The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on Wednesday filed a case against six former senior officials of the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), including a former chairman, for allegedly causing a financial loss of Tk 9,010 crore to the government through criminal breach of trust and abuse of power.

The accused are former BTRC chairman Sunil Kanti Bose, former vice-chairman Brig Gen (retd) Md Ahsan Habib Khan, former chairman Dr Shahjahan Mahmood, former commissioner Md Jahurul Haque, Md Rezaul Kader and Md Aminul Hasan.

According to the ACC, the accused unlawfully granted illegal benefits to International Gateway (IGW) operators by violating government directives, relevant laws and policies. These irregularities led to massive losses in government revenue.

ACC sources said that between September 18, 2014 and September 30, 2015, the fixed termination rate for international incoming calls was $0.03 per minute on a trial basis. However, the accused illegally reduced this rate to $0.015 and lowered the government’s revenue share from 51.75% to 40%.

At the same time, IGW operators’ share was increased from 13.25% to 20%. These benefits continued for an additional 28 months even after the trial period ended — without government approval.

As a result, the government suffered a total financial loss of Tk9,010.74 crore. This includes Tk383.73 crore from reduced revenue share, Tk2,941.99 crore from lower call termination rates, and Tk5,685.01 crore lost as potential foreign exchange earnings.

The case has been approved under Sections 409 and 418 of the Penal Code, Section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947, and Sections 4(2) and 4(3) of the Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2012, the ACC said.