Police have arrested Alhaj Borhan Uddin Chowdhury Bulbul, former president of the Awami League’s Mithamoin upazila unit and a four-time former chairman of Ghagra Union Parishad in Kishoreganj.
He was arrested on Monday afternoon, 7 September, in front of Kishoreganj Model Police Station. Police said he was subsequently shown arrested in two cases filed over alleged attacks on students and members of the public during the anti-discrimination student movement.
According to police and local sources, Borhan Uddin had been travelling by rickshaw from the Kishoreganj court towards the Puranthana area of the town on Monday afternoon. When he reached the area in front of the Model Police Station, police stopped him and took him into custody.
The arrest has generated considerable discussion in Mithamoin and across the local political community. Borhan Uddin has been a familiar figure in the area’s politics for many years, having served as the chairman of Ghagra Union Parishad on four occasions and later holding the position of president of the local Awami League unit.
His political career, however, has also included periods of internal rivalry and competition. During the previous Awami League-led administration, he was locally regarded as a politician who had become relatively marginalised within the party despite his long involvement in local politics.
He also contested the most recent upazila parishad election for the chairman’s post, facing Asia Alam, the younger sister of former president Abdul Hamid. Borhan Uddin lost the contest by a relatively narrow margin, adding another significant episode to the political rivalry surrounding the upazila.
Following news of his arrest, some of his supporters took to social media to question the cases against him. They alleged that longstanding local political disputes and competition over influence in Ghagra Union may have played a role in his being implicated in the cases. These claims, however, have not been independently established.
Police have maintained that the arrest was made in connection with two specific cases relating to alleged attacks during the anti-discrimination student movement. Kishoreganj Model Police Station officer-in-charge Abul Kalam Bhuiyan said the cases had been filed against Borhan Uddin in connection with the incidents.
The anti-discrimination student movement led to widespread unrest and violence in different parts of Bangladesh, with subsequent investigations resulting in a large number of criminal cases. Several political figures and activists have faced allegations linked to incidents that took place during the movement. The cases have since become part of broader legal proceedings involving alleged attacks and violence.
Borhan Uddin was produced before a court on Tuesday, 8 September, and was subsequently sent to jail through a court order.
His arrest has added to the political and legal developments surrounding former ruling-party figures in the area. While his supporters have questioned the basis of the allegations, the police have cited the two cases as the legal grounds for taking him into custody.
As with any criminal allegation, the charges against Borhan Uddin will have to be established through the judicial process. His arrest and detention do not, by themselves, establish his guilt. The investigation and subsequent court proceedings will determine how the allegations are dealt with under the law.
