Mofizur Rahman Mamun, president of Ward No. 91 of the BNP’s Pallabi unit under Dhaka Metropolitan North, has been expelled from the party over allegations of unethical activities and anti-organisational conduct.
The decision was announced in a press release issued Tuesday and signed by BNP Assistant Office Secretary Muhammad Munir Hossain. According to the release, Mamun has been expelled from all party posts as well as the primary membership of the BNP.
The decision came on the same day that Prothom Alo published a report titled “Three brothers’ gang in Mirpur, controlling three areas.” The report, citing police and local sources, alleged that Mamun operates a criminal group in Mirpur while staying in Malaysia. His two brothers, Jamil Rahman and Mashiur Rahman, allegedly oversee activities in Bangladesh.
According to the report, the group has been accused of controlling extortion, scrap-garment trading, land grabbing and drug-related activities in Pallabi, Mirpur-12, Sagufata and Baunia areas.
The report also said allegations have emerged since the July mass uprising that the so-called “Mamun gang” is involved in land grabbing, extortion, drug and scrap-garment businesses, control over cable television and internet connections, and collection of rent from illegal slum houses.
Police and local sources told Prothom Alo that four groups, allegedly operated by four people based abroad, are active in Mirpur under what is described as the “Four Star Group.” The report identified the “Mamun gang” as one of those groups and named Mofizur Rahman Mamun as its alleged leader.
The report cited several alleged incidents of land grabbing and extortion in different parts of Mirpur involving the group. In one case, property owner Mohammad Ali alleged that a roughly 28-katha plot of land had been occupied by members of the Mamun gang. However, Mashiur Rahman denied allegations of extortion and other crimes.
According to police information cited in the report, Mamun was arrested in February 2021. Police said at the time that he had spent some time in jail in 2001 before leaving Bangladesh for India in 2004. He was arrested in India in 2008 over allegations of passport forgery and illegal entry and served a 10-year sentence, police said.
After returning to Bangladesh, Mamun was arrested in 2021. Police then said records showed 27 cases against him at Pallabi Police Station involving allegations including extortion, murder, drugs, illegal use of firearms and robbery, along with 15 arrest warrants and two warrants related to convictions. A police source later said Mamun fled after obtaining bail, according to the report.
The Prothom Alo report also linked alleged members of the Mamun gang to the murder case of Golam Kibria, secretary of the Pallabi unit of Jubo Dal. Police said several people had already been arrested in that case and that efforts were underway to arrest others whose names emerged during interrogation.
The use of political identities in alleged criminal activities has also drawn attention from the BNP’s Dhaka Metropolitan North leadership. Prothom Alo quoted Dhaka Metropolitan North BNP convenor Aminul Haque as saying that strict organisational action would be taken against anyone involved in crimes while using the party’s identity.
With Tuesday’s decision, Mofizur Rahman Mamun has lost both his primary membership and all party positions in the BNP, according to the party’s press release.
