NCP Leaders Arrested in Alleged Ransom Collection Case

Five individuals, including two political leaders linked to the Jatiya Nagorik Party (NCP) and its youth wing, have been remanded in custody in Dinajpur following a botched kidnapping and ransom exchange. Law enforcement officials managed to rescue a middle-aged man during a targeted sting operation, which subsequently triggered a violent confrontation inside a local police station.

The primary suspects have been identified as Arif Mun, the central organisational secretary of the Jatiya Jubo Shakti, and Hasin Ishrak Mim, 22, whom police contend is a member of the NCP Dinajpur district committee. Three of their associates—Minaj, 29, Prem, 22, and Hridoy Islam, 22—were also detained following subsequent altercations with officers. All five men were officially arrested under kidnapping and extortion charges before being transferred to the district jail by a court order on Tuesday.

The case originated on Sunday evening when Abdus Samad, 58, a resident of Khosalpur village in Dinajpur Sadar Upazila, was forcibly abducted from his home. The kidnappers later contacted his family, demanding a hefty ransom of 15 lakh Taka for his safe release. Following tense negotiations, the abductors agreed to lower the amount, instructing the victim’s son, Mohammad Mamun, to deliver 4 lakh Taka to a microbus stand near the Gor-e-Shahid Boro Maidan on Monday afternoon.

Unbeknownst to the criminals, Mamun had alerted the authorities. Acting on this intelligence, a plain-clothes police unit set up a perimeter around the designated exchange point. When a private car carrying the hostage arrived, officers closed in, rescuing Samad unharmed and catching Arif Mun and Hasin Ishrak Mim red-handed as they attempted to collect the illicit funds.

The situation escalated dramatically once the suspects were brought to the Dinajpur Kotwali Police Station. A crowd of NCP and Jubo Shakti activists gathered at the premises, attempting to lobby for the immediate release of their leaders. The demonstration quickly turned volatile, culminating in a physical scuffle as activists clashed with station personnel. Police reinforcements deployed non-lethal measures to restore order, arresting Minaj, Prem, and Hridoy Islam on the spot for disrupting public order and assaulting officers.

News of the arrests sparked further political friction across the municipality. On Monday night, activists from the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its affiliate groups staged a counter-demonstration outside the police station, demanding exemplary punishment for the abductors. As tensions between rival political factions mounted, authorities cleared the area and ordered NCP sympathisers to leave the vicinity.

The victim’s son formally lodged a criminal complaint on Monday night, naming the five detainees alongside 10 to 12 unidentified accomplices. Nourunnabi, the Officer-in-Charge (OC) of the Dinajpur Kotwali Police Station, stated that preliminary assessments suggest the abduction may have been motivated by a pre-existing financial dispute. He assured the public that a thorough investigation is underway to establish the exact facts. Meanwhile, Shamsul Muktadir, the convenor of the district NCP, publicly distanced the party from the controversy, asserting that Hasin Ishrak Mim is not an official committee member and calling for an impartial judicial inquiry.