He was once a teacher and then tried his luck in business. He then became a chairman of the union parishad. Due to his involvement with Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) and Bangladesh Awami Jubo League politics, he had connections with Awami League’s central leaders. Although he was accused of corruption during his tenure as UP chairman, he had become a member of parliament (MP) and then a state minister.
After becoming an MP, his corruption increased even more. Allegations are there that he got involved in extortion, land grabbing, illegal occupation of shrimp enclosures and misappropriation of public funds.
The man in question is former MP of Patuakhali-4 constituency and former state minister for disaster management and relief Md Mohibbur Rahman. None could dare to speak up against Mohibbur Rahman all these years.
Upazila Awami League’s senior vice president SM Rakibul Ahsan told Prothom Alo that Mohibbur Rahman’s corruption was so pervasive that he did not spare any sector. He did no work without money. He intimidated people to sell their lands to him at a nominal price. Mohibur Rahman inflicted irreparable damage to Awami League for such activities.
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has started an investigation into the allegations of illegal wealth acquisition against Mohibbur Rahman and his wife Fatema Akhter.
On 8 September, a letter was sent from the ACC headquarters to the Patuakhali district registrar to investigate the allegations. The letter asked to send detailed information on land documents and records from 2017 to 2024.
After the fall of the Awami League government on 5 August, five cases were filed against Mohibur on charges of murder, extortion, assault and vandalism. He and his family members have been absconding since 5 August. Due to this, it was not possible to know his statement on these allegations.
Wilfulness in allocation of government grants
Mohibbur Rahman gave the money allocated for the impoverished, helpless, disabled, flood-affected, and river erosion-affected people to his favourite people and Awami League leaders and activists.
On 29 August, some people published a list of beneficiaries approved by the disaster management and relief ministry on Facebook on 9 June. It shows that Tk 750,000 has been allocated for 123 people. This money was allocated from the discretionary fund of the MP.
A letter dated 22 August 2019 from the cabinet division said that the discretionary fund is mainly for providing financial assistance to the destitute and physically disabled; but the former state minister gave Tk 5,000 to 10,000 to well-off people as well.
An analysis of the list of beneficiaries shows that Md Shafiul Alam from Dhaka’s Shewrapara received Tk 10,000. Mohipur thana unit Awami League general secretary Md Nur Islam received Tk 10,000.
Kalapara upazila Awami League vice president ABM Shamsuzzaman, Lalua union Awami League president Tariq Khan, Dhulasar union Awami League acting president Monir Khalifa, general secretary Modasser Hawlader, Dhulasar union Awami League leader Shahriar Sabuj, Kalapara pourashava Jubo League’s former president Md Ziaur Rahman, Kuakata pourashava Awami League organising secretary and hotelier Md Mahbub Akon, Kuakata pourashava Chhatra League leader Raisul Islam received Tk 5,000 each.
In Rangabali upazila, Swecchasebak League general secretary Shohidul Islam, upazila Sramik League president Rowshan Ahmed Mridha’s wife Akhimoni, upazila Awami League’s health and population affairs secretary Dilip Bishwas too received money from the MP’s fund.
Upazila nirbahi officer (UNO) Md Mizanur Rahman said the former state minister himself prepared the list of beneficiaries. The money was distributed on 2 July in his presence.
Under the rural maintenance programme (TR), some 25 disaster-resilient houses were allocated for the poor in the 2018-19 fiscal.
However, Mohibbur’s nephews, grandson, neighbours and his party activists got those houses. Some Tk 258,000 was allocated for each of these houses. In total, some Tk 6.45 million was spent for the construction of these 25 houses.
Upazila project-implementation officer (PIO) Md Humayun Kabir said the former MP prepared the list based on his own. The houses were handed over to people as per that.
According to the list, the beneficiaries who got those houses are – Dhulasar union Awami League president Md Yunus Dalal’s brother Md Anis Dalal, the former lawmaker’s nephews Nuhu Mridha, Md Shahidul Islam and Hannan Hawladar, Md Shahdat, Md Bashir Uddin, Md Saidur Rahman and Md Nabuyat and neighbour Md Hannan Gazi.
Extortion from the fishermen
The fishermen had to pay tolls to state minister Mohibbur Rahman’s associates for fishing near the chars in Kuakata including Char Bijay, Rangabalir Char, Sonar Char, Mayar Char, Jahajmarar Char, Char Montaj, Char Tufaniya and Hairer Char. The former MP’s men would collect tolls for fishing near the Kuakata sea beach and the Gangamati beach estuary.
Local fishermen alleged that Mohibbur Rahman’s personal assistant (PA) Md Tariqul Islam, Dhulasar union Swechchhasebak League president Mintu Bhuiyan and his close associates used to collect tolls from the fishermen on yearly basis.
Abdul Malek who fishes around Kawar Char said, “We would not be allowed to fish without paying the tolls. The MP’s men would collect the toll on a yearly basis. I too have to pay Tk 200,000 as extortion.”
Speaking regarding the allegations, accused Mintu Bhuiyan and Tariqul Islam said these were false accusations. Probably somebody collected tolls from them using the name of the former MP Mohibbur Rahman. But the former lawmaker had no idea about it.
“These allegations are politically motivated to demean him,” he added.
Mohibbur’s rise in politics
Mohibbur Rahman completed his honours from the sociology department at Dhaka University. He got involved with Bangladesh Chhatra League while at university. Later, he secured a place in the central committee of Bangladesh Awami Jubo League. He also served as the principal of Alhaj Jalaluddin Degree College, which was named after his father.
Later, in 2003, he was elected the chairman of Dhulasar union parishad. However, he used to stay in Dhaka mostly. He had a furniture business in Mirpur’s Kazipara area.
At one point, he got into a dispute with 12 union parishad (UP) members over distribution of the projects allocated for the union. The UP members took initiative to bring no confidence motion against him. He, however, managed that by lobbying in Dhaka.
Some of the then UP members said Mohibbur always had taken money from the project allocation despite being outside the area most of the time.
Mohibbur became an MP with the nomination from the Awami League for the first time in 2018. He left his job before that. He became an Awami League lawmaker for the second consecutive term in 2024 and was appointed the state minister for the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief.
Building on a government canal
Mohibbur Rahman’s ancestral house is located in the Etimkhana area of Kalapara municipality. In 2019, Mohibbur demolished the old building and since then, he with his four brothers, sister and mother have been constructing a seven-storey building there.
Mohibbur completed the second floor of that under construction building and started living there. They filled up 10-15 feet of the Chingoria canal for the new building. The water flow of the canal was hampered due to this.
Visiting the area on 9 and 10 October, the house was found locked up. There were piles of tins beneath the building. Locals say those tins belong to the disaster management and relief ministry.
Exerting influence to buy and grab lands
Joint secretary Md Enamul Haque and his family members purchased some 28.41 acres of land on the banks of Andharmanik River in the Itbaria village of Kalapara. After becoming the MP for the first time, Mohibbur purchased some 8 acres of the land in his wife’s name using his influence. The deeds for the land purchase was registered through the sub-registrar office in Khepupara on 21 December 2019.
Victim Enamul Haque’s cousin and one of the owners of the land Md Abu Sayeed Hawladar said, “All the records of the land are in favour of us. The record of the lands was also corrected in our name. We are also paying tax for the land. After becoming the MP he used power to change the land record in his wife’s name with the help of the officials in the local land office. He resorted to forgery to show some fake people as the owners of the land to register it in his wife’s name.”
Mohibbur shifted his focus on the lands in tourist spot Kuakata after becoming a lawmaker in 2018. Sources at the DC office say Mohibbur illegally occupied some 39 decimal of government lands in the Latachapli mouza in Kuakata and erected a boundary wall surrounding it.
The former MP was served a notice signed by the then additional district commissioner (ADC) Md Mamunur Rashid to vacate the government land. However, that land is yet to be recovered, said Kalapara upazila assistant commissioner (land) Koushik Ahmed. A raid will be conducted to retrieve the land, he said.
According to the documents of the local land office and administration, Mohibbur Rahman purchased a total of 29.74 acres of lands in different areas over the last six years using his power. Some 22.18 acres of these lands were registered in his wife’s name.
Income increases by six times
According to the affidavit submitted by Mohibbur Rahman before the national parliamentary election of 2018, his annual income was Tk 2.55 million, which increased by six times to Tk 14.27 million in the affidavit submitted ahead of the 12th parliamentary polls in 2024.
He had Tk 355,946 in cash before the polls in 2018, which rose to Tk 80.87 million by the next parliamentary polls. He had monthly and saving deposits of more than Tk 1 million in different banks and financial institutions in 2018. The amount rose to more than 2.4 million in 2024.
* The report, originally published in the print and online edition of Prothom Alo, has been rewritten in English by Galib Ashraf and Ashish Basu