Authorities in Bangladesh have arrested a second son of former prime minister Khaleda Zia, officials said Monday, as the a military-backed interim government stepped up its anti-corruption drive.Military-led security forces arrested ZiaÂ’s younger son Arafat Rahman Coco in the capital Dhaka on Sunday evening, a senior police officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The arrest came just a month after ZiaÂ’s influential eldest son, Tareque Rahman was arrested on charges of extortion.
While Tareque had been groomed as his motherÂ’s political successor, Arafat has maintained a low profile. He owns several companies and ferries that carry goods and passengers on the delta nationÂ’s river network and was a patron of the countryÂ’s cricket board.
The military-backed government has so far arrested more than 50 top politicians since launching its anti-graft drive in February. The new government vowed to clean up politics and carry out sweeping reforms before announcing a new date for elections. Last week the head of the government pledged that the polls would be held before the end of 2008.
Zia, who was prime minister until her five-year term ended in October, has been under virtual house arrest since last week. A source close to the former premier Monday accused the government of trying to “blackmail” Zia into self-imposed exile abroad.