Bangladesh’s former law minister Anisul Haque and former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s adviser on private industry and investment Salman F Rahman have been arrested by the police.
Police informed that they were arrested from Sadarghat area of Dhaka on Tuesday night.
After the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government in the face of the mass movement, the three-time law minister of the Awami League government Mr. Haque and advisor Mr. Rahman has not been seen in public for a long time.
Like other top leaders of Awami League, they are said to have covered their heads to avoid attack and arrest.
The police said that they were arrested in a case filed at Dhaka’s Newmarket police station in connection with the violence and death of the quota movement last July.
However, none of the accused were brought to the Newmarket police station till 11:30 on Wednesday.
“We also heard about the arrests, but so far they have not come to our police station,” Newmarket police station sub-inspector (SI) Shafiqul Islam told BBC Bangla.
The police has not officially informed about the whereabouts of Anisul Haque and Salman F Rahman after their arrest.
However, a senior police officer told BBC Bangla that they are in the custody of the detective police.
The official, who did not wish to be named, also said that they may be taken to court soon.
Were in hiding?
Ever since Sheikh Hasina left the post of Prime Minister and moved abroad, there have been attacks, vandalism and looting of Awami League offices and the homes and businesses of Awami League leaders and activists in most districts of the country.
In these incidents, many Awami League leaders and activists were killed and injured in several districts including Dhaka, Chandpur, Jessore, Satkhira, Barisal, Sirajganj, Lalmonirhat.
In such a situation, many of the top leaders of the party covered their heads in search of safe shelter.
Awami League president Sheikh Hasina and many leaders fled abroad.
While leaving the country, the party’s joint general secretary and recently former foreign minister Hasan Mahmud and former state minister for posts, telecommunications and information technology Junaid Ahmed Palak were detained at the airport.
Besides, it is known that those who are still staying in the country have left their homes and are hiding due to the fear of being infected.
On the afternoon of August 5th, the house of Sheikh Hasina’s adviser and former member of parliament Salman F. Rahman was vandalized and set on fire.
The attack was carried out in the same way. Rahman owns many factories and businesses of the Beximco Group.
After those incidents in the last week Mr. Rahman was not seen anywhere in public.
Many thought that he had fled abroad.
After the ouster of the Awami League government, the house of former law minister Anisul Haque was similarly attacked.
On the evening of August 5th Mr. located in Kasba of Brahmanbaria. A group of people vandalized Haque’s house and set it on fire.
At noon that day Mr. Haque’s phone was unlocked. But after the announcement of Sheikh Hasina’s resignation, it was stopped.
As a result, nothing was known about his location.
What the police are saying about the arrest
It has been informed by the police that former Law Minister Anisul Haque and Sheikh Hasina’s adviser Salman F Rahman were arrested from Sadarghat area of Dhaka on Tuesday evening while trying to escape by sea.
“Based on secret information, former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s private industry and investment adviser Salman F Rahman and former law minister Anisul Haque have been arrested from the Sadarghat area of the capital Dhaka while fleeing by sea,” Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) said.
A post on DMP’s verified Facebook page also said the same.
However, no police official was willing to talk or give details about when and how they were arrested.
Meanwhile, after the arrest, several pictures have been widely circulated on social media, especially Facebook.
In one of these pictures Mr. Haque and Mr. Rahman was seen with his hands tied. Several members of the Coast Guard were seen standing guard beside them.
Looking at this photo, many people are thinking that the two leaders of Awami League were arrested by the Coast Guard members first. Then they may have been handed over to the police.
Many of the local media of Bangladesh published that picture. However, the images have not been independently verified by the BBC.
Arrested in that case
At least two people, including a student, were killed in a clash in the Dhaka College area on July 16 during the quota reform movement.
In that incident, the relatives of the victims filed two murder cases as plaintiffs. Unknown persons were accused in those cases.
Former Law Minister Anisul Haque and former Member of Parliament Salman F Rahman have been arrested in a case, Newmarket police said.
Salman F Rahman, Vice Chairman of Beximco Group, one of the leading industrial conglomerates in Bangladesh, became Sheikh Hasina’s private sector advisor in 2009.
In 2019, he was appointed Advisor to the Prime Minister on Private Industries and Investments at the rank of Minister.
Besides, he was elected Member of Parliament from a seat in Dhaka in two controversial national elections of 2018 and 2024.
On the other hand, after the Awami League came to power a decade and a half ago, lawyer Anisul Haque served as the chief counsel of the state in the murder case of Bangladesh’s founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and four national leaders.
Then in 2014 election without BNP, he was elected Member of Parliament from Brahmanbaria with the support of Awami League.
In the same year, he got the responsibility of the law minister of the Awami League government. Before being ousted Mr. Haque held the same post for over ten years.
Among the Awami League leaders who sat in discussions with the students to solve the crisis that started around the quota reform movement recently, Mr. Hawk was also seen.