Mob Search Operation Defies Home Adviser’s Directive

Staff Reporter

On Thursday afternoon, Home Adviser Lieutenant General (Retd.) Md. Jahangir Alam Chowdhury stated, “No one except law enforcement agencies has the authority to conduct raids.” Although this statement was made in the context of recent incidents of looting under the guise of raids, on Thursday night, a mob of radical students and activists, identifying themselves as “students and public,” conducted a raid on a house in Mirpur DOHS.

The operation was led by Sheikh Tarek Jamil Taj, who is reportedly the convener of the Pallabi Thana-based “Anti-Discrimination Student Movement” (Baecha).

Eyewitnesses reported that a group of 20 to 25 people, led by Taj, searched the house looking for former Member of Parliament (MP) MA Motaleb from Chattogram-15 (Satkania-Lohagara) constituency.

Residents of the house said that during the raid, the students argued with the house owner and members of the building management committee and forcibly entered the premises. They harassed the residents under the guise of interrogation and demanded information about the former MP. The residents informed them that he was admitted to United Hospital.

When the house owner witnessed the mob’s terror, they called the national emergency service number 999, and police arrived at the scene. Pallabi Thana Sub-Inspector (SI) Humayun Ahmed said, “The group entered the house before I arrived. The house owner objected to their actions. The students did not find anyone in the house. Later, I informed my superiors, and following the OC’s instructions, I asked the students to leave.” Although some were taken to the police station, Baecha convener Taj and a few others remained at the scene.

When asked about the incident, Taj claimed to the media that it was not a raid and that they had informed the police before going there, but the police arrived later.

The students claimed that former MP Motaleb was not found at the house. After receiving information, they went to the hospital, but he was not there either. They suspect that Motaleb left the hospital before they arrived.

Just hours before the students’ raid, the Home Adviser had stated that no one except law enforcement agencies could conduct raids. He also mentioned that crimes were being committed by forming mobs, but the government was trying to bring the situation under control.

However, despite his statement, Baecha activists carried out the raid. This has raised questions about the administration’s role, and concerns have grown among the public about how such an operation could take place without the permission of law enforcement agencies.

Meanwhile, it is still unclear whether any formal investigation has been launched into the students’ raid.

It is worth noting that on the night of March 4, in a similar manner, individuals associated with the Baecha movement conducted an unauthorized and illegal search at the Gulshan residence of Tanvir Imam, the ex-wife of HT Imam, the political adviser to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The raid, led by Jewel, the general secretary of the BNP-affiliated Chhatra Dal, and his son Shakil, involved hundreds of people who ransacked the house, vandalized property, and looted valuables under the pretext of searching for illegal money, weapons, and fugitive Awami League leaders. The incident drew widespread criticism, especially since the raid took place in the presence of the police, targeting the residence of a woman who had been divorced from Tanvir Imam 25 years ago. The interim government faced significant backlash over the incident.