The Dinajpur District Bar Association has terminated two of its employees for their involvement in a long-running scam involving the forgery of seals and signatures to sell fake Okalatnamas (legal power of attorney documents).
The decision was made during an emergency meeting on Tuesday afternoon after the accused confessed to their crimes.
The Bar Association committee took the following disciplinary actions:
Md. Towhid Hossain (Office Assistant): Permanently dismissed from service. Monowar Hossain (Head Clerk): Temporarily suspended pending further investigation.
The fraud came to light when Advocate Suman Sarkar purchased a 500-Taka Okalatnama from Towhid Hossain. Upon inspection, he noticed the signature of the Library Secretary, Mizanur Rahman, looked suspicious.
Since the two lawyers work at adjacent desks, Suman immediately showed the document to Mizanur, who confirmed the signature was a forgery. A formal written complaint was filed with the Bar Association President, leading to an internal investigation where more lawyers came forward with similar evidence of counterfeit documents.
The Bar Association, managed by a 15-member committee, relies on the sale of legal stationery as its primary source of income. This includes:
Okalatnama: 500 Taka, Bail Bond: 350 Taka, Accused Attendance Form: 15 Taka, Firisti (List of Documents): 20 Taka.
Lawyers noted that while the daily average income of the association used to be between 1.5 to 2 lakh Taka, it had recently plummeted to 60,000–90,000 Taka. This sharp decline in revenue suggests a massive influx of fake documents circulating within the court premises.
Abdul Halim, President of the Dinajpur Bar Association, stated that a probe committee had been formed following multiple complaints."Based on specific evidence, we have expelled two employees. Preparations are underway to file criminal cases against them. We will conduct a deeper investigation; if any elected members of the association are found involved, they will also face strict legal action," he warned. The association members are now demanding a thorough investigation to dismantle the entire syndicate involved in misappropriating funds meant for the welfare of the legal community.
