National Traitor: Dr. Khalilur Rahman

-Opinion

Bangladesh is now afflicted with Khalil fever. Before discussing Khalil, let’s briefly mention the world-renowned poet Khalil Gibran. Some Bengali translators refer to him as Khalil Gibran. This globally famous American poet and philosopher of Lebanese origin wrote the renowned poem “On Children.” Here are a few lines from it:

“Your children are not your children. / They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you. / And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts. / For they have their own thoughts.”

Though translations may vary, the essence of the poem is clear. Did Gibran write this poem almost a century ago, foreseeing our Khalil?

2.
The nation is embroiled in controversy over the dual citizenship allegations and counter-challenges against Dr. Khalilur Rahman, the National Security Advisor and High Representative for Rohingya Affairs. Let’s first discuss the passports. At least four passport numbers have been found:

AA55074… (Ordinary)
BL02351… (Ordinary)
EJ01478… (Ordinary)
DC80091… (Diplomatic)

All four are Bangladeshi passports. The first two have expired. The third is valid, but he later obtained a diplomatic passport as per regulations. Let’s delve into these passports. The matter is sensitive, and to respect privacy, full numbers are not disclosed.

Before 2011, passports were handwritten, with no digital records. In 2011, he applied for his first MRP passport from the USA. The assigned number was AA55074…, an ordinary passport.

For the application, he used National ID number 1954-000-8403000070, with birth date: 01 April 1954, birthplace: Dhaka, and address: House-59, Road-4, Block-C, Banani, Dhaka.

In 2016, he renewed his passport from the USA with the same details, obtaining MRP number BL02351….

In 2021, he applied again from the USA, using the same information except for the address, which he changed to Quaker Lane, Greenwich, CT 06831, USA. The passport number was EJ01478…. Despite e-passports being available, he did not opt for one. He listed his phone number as 9179745937 and his wife Nurun Nahar’s as 6313847111.

From 2011 to 2024, he used the same photo for all passports, meaning he never visited the embassy or passport office for a new photo. He consistently used his birth registration number. Notably, he does not have an NID, meaning he is not a voter in Bangladesh.

On 02 December 2024, he applied for a diplomatic passport. Despite e-passports being mandatory, he again opted for an MRP, numbered DC80091…. This is because an e-passport requires an NID, which he lacks. Why no NID? Why has he never enrolled as a voter? Even the smart card system is now in place, but he hasn’t obtained one. Why?

In his passport applications, he never disclosed dual citizenship, implying concealment. Immigration records show he entered Bangladesh as a “migrant,” a term often used for dual citizens, green card holders, or PR holders.

Multiple instances of concealment, 23 consecutive years in the USA, adopting the name Roger Rahman, not obtaining a smart card, not registering birth online, and replacing his Bangladeshi address with an American one all confirm his dual citizenship.

3.
Dr. Khalilur Rahman left his foreign service career to join the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1991. His batchmate, Nasim Ferdous, Bangladesh’s first female diplomat, mentions in her book *Basant Hawar Din Guloi* that in 2001, Khalil took leave from UNCTAD to join Justice Latifur Rahman, the caretaker government’s chief advisor, as an assistant on foreign affairs. Latifur Rahman’s nickname was “Shanti.” Newspapers now report he was appointed as a Private Secretary (PS). In 2024, under another Nobel Peace laureate, Dr. Muhammad Yunus, he became a special advisor. One “Shanti” pursued him for 24 years; how long will the current “Shanti” chase him?

In his book *The Days of the Caretaker Government and My Words*, Justice Latifur Rahman writes: “My uncle Justice Nurul Huda’s son-in-law, Dr. Khalilur Rahman, expressed interest in becoming my PS. At the time, Khalil was in permanent UN employment. He wanted to take a three-month leave to serve the country. I decided to appoint him. Around July 9/10, Khalil met me in Dhaka. He typed the list of advisors on his computer, and I assigned their ministries. He kept it confidential on his computer.”

Justice Latifur mentions Khalil’s permanent UN job, but his batchmate Nasim Ferdous’s account of UNCTAD seems more credible. Note that Justice Latifur was sworn in on July 15, but Khalil arrived from New York on July 9/10 and began work immediately. Interestingly, Latifur moved into the official residence “Jamuna” on July 13 and finalized advisor appointments, interviews, and administrative reshuffles before the oath-taking. On July 15, massive bureaucratic changes were made, termed a “civilian coup” in Bangladesh’s political history. Khalil and other personal staff were appointed that day, but work had begun earlier.

Personally, Justice Latifur had started working post-retirement, assisted by NSI DG Kazi Golam Rahman, now chairman of Hamdard Laboratories (Waqf) Bangladesh’s trustee board.

In 2001, Khalil was instrumental in posting AFM Solaiman Chowdhury and Helal Uddin Badri, the architects of the Awami League massacre in Feni, back to Feni. Latifur’s writings confirm Khalil’s role in such missions.

In 2001, Protocol Officer Ayesha Afsari (NIPA), a BCS administration cadre officer, was murdered by her husband, businessman Zahirul Islam Jahan, who then committed suicide. This tragedy was linked to Khalil’s affair with Ayesha. Khalil arranged her posting as Second Secretary in New York while securing his own UN contract as deputy permanent representative. The affair and her US posting led to the murder-suicide on October 5. A case was filed but never pursued. Justice Latifur mentions the tragedy but avoids details.

After this, Khalil disappeared from public life. Had August 5 not happened, no one would have remembered him. But August 5 changed his fortunes. On November 19, he was appointed High Representative for Rohingya Affairs, and on April 9, National Security Advisor. The interim government has achieved something remarkable: gathering all Bangladeshi fraudsters, cheats, and manipulators under Dr. Muhammad Yunus. An unprecedented feat.

Khalil joined the foreign service on March 1, 1979. His batchmates—Liaquat Ali Chowdhury, Amir Hossain Sikder, Humayun Kabir, Mahmud Hasan, Munshi Faiz Ahmed, Nasim Ferdous—retired by 2010. Of the ten, only Khalil left before completing 25 years. No records exist of his resignation. He doesn’t even draw a pension. His file at the foreign ministry lacks details. His only link to Bangladesh was as a trustee of East West University.

4.
Khalilur Rahman earned his master’s and PhD in the USA, working as a consultant for the UN, UNDP, insurance, and banks. Recently, social media claimed his PhD was fake, like Mokhlesur Rahman’s (Senior Secretary, Ministry of Public Administration). But Khalil’s PhD is genuine—not from Harvard, but Tufts University.

Khalil is a skilled manager. He managed Justice Latifur Rahman and now manages Muhammad Yunus. But what did he do in the USA from 2001 to 2024? His affiliations, work with the US government—all remain vague. Khalil himself is evasive. But his actions reveal him.

He has set Bangladesh ablaze. Just as the US installed Yunus as chief advisor, they placed Khalil to assist him. Experts suggest Khalil has long been under CIA and Mossad supervision, sent to Bangladesh for specific agendas. A 1970s Dhaka University student leader turned analyst claims Khalil was close to far-left groups, particularly Farhad Mazhar, who strengthened religious politics. Khalil may now align with this ideology.

Recently, under Yunus’s direction, Khalil announced a humanitarian corridor in Rakhine but later backtracked due to military and political opposition. He has since exploited his NSA role to create factions within the military, involving PSO Lt Gen SM Kamrul Hasan, QMG Lt Gen Md Faizur Rahman, DG DGFI Maj Gen Md Jahangir Alam, DG NSI Maj Gen Abu Mohammad Sarwar Farid, DG BGB Maj Gen Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Siddiqui, and Coast Guard DG Rear Admiral Md Ziaul Haq. Such factionalism mirrors General Ziaur Rahman’s era, leading to bloody coups. Khalil may flee like he did after the 2001 murder, but Bangladesh will suffer.

5.
Multiple reports confirm Khalil lived in the USA from 1998 to June 2024 under the name Roger Rahman, gaining citizenship and even holding government jobs. Several addresses are linked to him:

– From October 1998, he lived at 29 Breton Road, Scarsdale, NY 10583 for nearly 19 years.
– From August 2017, he lived at 36 Alexandria Doctor, Oxon Hill, MD 20745 for about 3 years.
– From January 2020, he lived at 1 Quaker Lane, Greenwich, CT 06831 for 4 years.

Other addresses include:
– 1 Quaker Lane, Greenwich, CT 06831 (used in his passport).
– 182 Weaver Street, Greenwich, CT 06831.
– 17 Clyde Road, Watertown, MA 02472.
– 1 Leighton Street, Unit 1307, Cambridge, MA 02141.
– 11 Scenic Lane, Yonkers, NY 10710.

US records list his wife as Nurun Nahar (Rahman), nicknamed “Sathi.” Her sister, Selin Dimatteo (married to a white American), is a neurologist in Manhasset, NY, now Selin Rahman-Dimatteo. Records list 13 relatives in Scarsdale, including his daughter Lamia Noorin.

Notably, Dr. Khalilur Rahman is the son-in-law of Justice Nurul Huda from Gopalganj, making him the brother-in-law of Justice Latifur Rahman’s cousin. Nurun Nahar Sathi’s father, Justice Nurul Huda, and Latifur’s mother were cousins of Bangabandhu’s personal assistant Haji Golam Morshed, whom the Pakistani army tortured. Justice Huda served as a Munsif since 1943 and became a High Court judge in 1972.

6.
After 1975, a Major General Khalilur Rahman was appointed Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), a unique position never held before or since.

The current National Security Advisor (NSA) is also Khalilur Rahman, a career diplomat—or semi-diplomat, as he left prematurely. He is the first NSA in Bangladesh’s history. General MAG Osmani served as Defence Advisor post-1975, and PM Sheikh Hasina had a security advisor, but Khalil is the first NSA.

Major General Khalilur Rahman was appointed CDS to resolve military crises but achieved little.

The current NSA, a US resident, was installed to protect American interests, creating military divisions. The difference lies in their objectives.

Final Words:
In Bangladesh, people named Khalil are often nicknamed “Khaila,” “Khalilya,” “Khali,” or “Khuli” in jest. This tradition existed 71 years ago and will likely continue. How was our NSA addressed by his peers?

A short anecdote to conclude: A man named Khalil, called “Khali,” had an uncle nicknamed “Kalu.” In Bangladesh, uncles are often called “Mamu.” Mamu Kalu traded timber and lent money, while Khali traded jute. Both were known to cheat in measurements. When Mamu fell ill, Khali visited. After sitting by his bedside, he asked, “Mamu, do you understand? Will you survive or pass on?”

– Ali Shariati Ubach