Bahar became kingpin of Cumilla crime world

Bahauddin Bahar, former member of parliament for the Cumilla-6 constituency of Awami League, surrounded himself with three types of persons: armed terrorists, individuals accused of murder, and listed drug dealers.

This led to a climate of fear among the public. Through these connections, he exerted control over both politics and crime in Cumilla city and the surrounding areas.

Bahar's influence was so significant that Awami League leaders have claimed he decided what was considered 'fair' and 'unfair' in Cumilla city. He became a symbol of crime in the region.

Over the last 15 years, AKM Bahauddin Bahar placed his followers and close associates in various positions within the party. He helped them become public representatives, even sidelining senior leaders.

Notably, he appointed his daughter Tahseen Bahar as the organizing secretary of the Cumilla city Awami League. He declared her the sole candidate for the Cumilla city Awami League in the by-election for the post of mayor of Cumilla City Corporation last March, bypassing central decisions.

However, Tahseen could not serve as mayor for long. After the fall of the Awami League government during the student-led mass uprising on 5 August, she fled with her father Bahar.

In December 2008, Bahar first became member of parliament in the 9th National Parliament Election. He went on to serve as a member of parliament for Cumilla-6 (Adarsh Sadar, City Corporation, and Cumilla Cantonment) three more times until January 2024.

Prothom Alo visited Cumilla in the last week of September and spoke with 11 leaders from various levels of the city Awami League and its allied organisations. They reported that at least 20 leaders and activists have been attacked in the last 15 years for opposing Bahar. Some were beaten, while others were shot. Bahar's close associates have been involved in various misdeeds, including illegal land grabs, extortion, contract manipulation, and the suppression of opposition parties within their own ranks. Over the past 15 years, Bahar's associates were directly involved in the murders of at least five party leaders and workers in Cumilla city.

Cumilla city Awami League Advisor Nur Ur Rahman Mahmud (Tanim), who was once close to Bahar, told Prothom Alo that Bahar has committed a wide range of misdeeds, including contract manipulation and encroachment. Many leaders and activists have faced torture for opposing him politically, with some even being killed.

Soon after the fall of the Awami government during a mass uprising on 5 August, angry mobs burned down Bahar's house in the Munsefbari area of Cumilla city. Three cars in the garage were also set ablaze. The new Awami League office, a 10-story building in the Ramghat area, was also set on fire. The angry crowd even targeted the Cumilla Club and Town, which Bahar had controlled.

After independence, Afzal Khan was a key figure in controlling the political and criminal landscape of the Awami League in Cumilla city. At that time, Bahar was his follower, serving as the vice-president of the Cumilla District Chhatra League. A dispute arose between Bahar and Afzal Khan in the early eighties over the distribution of funds, during which Bahar had significant influence within the Cumilla Chhatra League.

In the 80’s, Afzal Khan served as the president of the Cumilla city Awami League, while Bahar held the position of general secretary. In 1984, Bahar won the Cumilla pourasava elections against Afzal for the post of chairman, largely due to Afzal’s opponents who united and supported Bahar’s candidacy.

Bahar was elected from the Cumilla Sadar constituency on the Awami League ticket in the 1991 fifth national parliament election. However, he did not receive the party’s nomination for the sixth national parliament election held in June 1996. Despite this setback, Bahar’s influence in Cumilla city grew significantly when the Awami League returned to power.

In 1998, Zahidur Rahman Bhuiyan, alias Babu, was stabbed to death in an internal conflict among Bahar’s followers in the Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL). All those involved in this murder were followers of Bahar. Three years later, in July 2001, Obaidul Haque, alias Dulal, the general secretary of the Cumilla Victoria College Chhatra League, was murdered in the Tomchambridge area of the city, with Bahar being named as an accused in the case. Among the other accused were former mayor of Cumilla City Corporation Arfanul Haque Rifat, a close associate of Bahar, Zahirul Islam, alias Rintu, president of the Cumilla city Swachhasevak League, and Ahmed Newaz Pavel, former vice chairman of Cumilla Adarsh Sadar Upazila. However, all the accused were later acquitted due to a lack of witnesses.

A leader who was once close to Bahar, speaking to Prothom Alo on the condition of anonymity, stated that Bahar became more active in cadre-based politics after Dulal’s murder, increasingly relying on armed cadres.

Since Bahar became a member of parliament in 2008, at least five more murders involving his aides have been reported. Delwar Hossain, the former organising secretary of the Cumilla South District Chhatra League, was murdered on 26 November 2018. He was a key witness in the Dulal murder case. According to the police investigation, the main planner of Delwar’s murder was Abdus Sattar, a former councilor of Ward no. 26 of Cumilla City Corporation and a close associate of Bahar. On 11 November, 2020, Bahar’s cadres killed Jubo League worker Zillur Rahman Chowdhury in the Chowara area of the city. The investigation revealed that the former councilor Abul Hasan of Ward No. 27 planned this murder.

Zillur’s brother, Imran Hossain Chowdhury, told Prothom Alo that he was falsely labeled a BNP worker and accused of arson and vandalism while seeking justice for his brother’s murder.

The last committee of the Cumilla City Awami League was formed in 2022, with Bahar becoming the president. Arfanul Haque Rifat, who was known as his close friend and has since passed away, was appointed as the general secretary. Bahar’s daughter, Tahseen, was made the organising secretary and is also the joint secretary of the Cumilla City Mahila Awami League. Bahar’s wife, Mehrunnesa Bahar, is a member of the City Mahila Awami League and the president of the District Diabetic Association, although she has never been active in politics. One of Bahar’s nephews, Sayer Sayerin, serves as the secretary for education and human resource affairs in the City Awami League.

A leader who previously held an important position in the Cumilla City Awami League told Prothom Alo that the year 2022 essentially became a “Committee of Bahar League.”

In addition to the Awami League, Bahar’s relatives have secured significant positions in various affiliated organisations. His son-in-law, Saiful Islam, alias Rony, is a member of the City Jubo League and was appointed as the Chairman of the Cricket Committee of the District Sports Association.

Another nephew, Abdul Aziz Sihanouk, is the convener of the Cumilla City Chhatra League, while his wife, Nusrat Jahan, serves as the assistant secretary of the City Jubo Mahila League. Another nephew, Habibul Alamin Sadi, is the top joint convener of the City Jubo League and is also a councilor of Ward No. 12 and a former panel mayor of the Cumilla City Corporation. Akash Waheed, the son of one of Bahar’s cousin, is a member of the City Jubo League, and a distant nephew, Junaid Sikder, serves as the joint convener of the City Krishak League.

In 2022, Bahar’s close associate Rifat was elected as the mayor of Cumilla City Corporation on the Awami League’s nomination. However, in a 2018 report from the then-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s office, he topped the list of drug dealers in the Cumilla region. Abdullah Al Mahmud, alias Shahid, was listed as the second-highest drug dealer and is currently the convener of the Cumilla city Jubo League.

A law enforcement source informed Prothom Alo that for the past 15 years, Bahar’s close associates have controlled the drug trade in Cumilla, with Bahar receiving a share of the profits from these illegal activities. Anisur Rahman (Mithu), the former Youth and Sports Secretary of the Cumilla city Awami League, stated that Bahar had engaged in rampant corruption from his position of power, which ultimately forced him to flee Cumilla.

In 2017, Bahar was announced as president and Rifat as general secretary of the Cumilla city Awami League Committee, despite there being no formal conference at that time. On 5 November, 2022, the conference was held at the Town Hall grounds, where armed cadres loyal to Bahar prevented opposition party members from entering the venue.

During the conference, Bahar’s supporters clashed with those supporting Afzal Khan’s daughter, Anjum Sultana. Supporters of Bahar, including members of the Chhatra League, Jubo League, and Swachhasevak League, were reported to have exploded crude bombs (cocktails) and opened fire. A video of the incident went viral on Facebook, showing a Jubo League worker named Mehdi Hasan firing a shotgun.

Sources from law enforcement and various leaders within the Awami League indicated that Bahar’s followers have at least 15 armed groups operating in Cumilla city and its surroundings. Allegations against these groups include tender manipulation, extortion, drug trafficking, murder, and torture. Prothom Alo spoke with four victims of torture perpetrated by Bahar’s followers, all but one of whom wished to remain anonymous. One victim described being beaten so severely that the tendons in his arms and legs were cut, and he now walks with crutches.

Another victim, Khalilur Rahman, alias Ripon, a former vice president of the Cumilla Polytechnic Institute, recounted that in 2010, Bahar’s followers, known as Rintu Bahini, attempted to kill him. Despite receiving treatment for an extended period, he still cannot walk normally.

On 1 April, a contractor named Masudul Islam was beaten and seriously injured in the office of the Education and Engineering Directorate, Cumilla. It is alleged that the followers of City Swechchhasebak League President Zahirul Islam and General Secretary Sadekur Rahman were involved in this incident.

On 30 September, this correspondent found Masudul lying in bed at his home in Cumilla, having undergone surgery on his left leg and both hands. He told Prothom Alo that for the past 15 years, Bahar and his close associates had maintained sole control over various development projects in Cumilla. Contractors were required to pay a commission of 10 per cent of the total allocation to Bahar to secure contract work. Those who refused to pay the commission were not allowed to work.

Conversations with officials and contractors from various government departments in Cumilla revealed that Bahar’s own company, M/s Construction and Equipment Supplier, receives most of the contracting work in the district. Other companies involved include Rony Traders, owned by Bahar’s son-in-law Rony; Hasan Techno Builders Limited, owned by City Awami League Vice President Nazmul Hasan; Messrs Haque Enterprises, operated by District Awami League Secretary of Industry and Commerce Enamul Haque; Messrs Islam Enterprises, run by City Swechchhasebak League President Zahirul Islam, alias Rintu; and Rana Builders, associated with Bahar’s ally Mohammad Alam. These companies have secured numerous contracts for various government development projects over the last 15 years.

According to the National EGP (Electronic Government Procurement) portal, from 2020 to 2024, Bahar Contracting Company received work worth Tk 16.57 billion, Hasan Techno Builders Limited received Tk 13.78 billion, Rana Builders Limited received Tk 54 billion, and Hawk Enterprise received Tk 1.69 billion.

On 12 April of last year, Bahar inaugurated an 11-storey commercial building named Sonali Square on a two-bigha plot of land in the Manoharpur area of Cumilla city, where he also serves as Chairman.

After becoming a member of parliament in 2009, Bahar set his sights on this disputed land, which had previously housed ten old shops. Among the shop owners was Bahar’s neighbour and close family associate Sumanta Chakraborty. He told Prothom Alo that the original owners of the land were two brothers named Jyoti Bhushan and Khiti Bhushan. His father took over the shop from the brothers 50 years ago. Neither brother had wives or children, and after their deaths, the land was confiscated. Bahar allegedly created fake documents to occupy the land, evicting the rightful owners and subsequently constructing a multi-storey commercial building.

According to Sumanta Chakraborty, he received no compensation for the loss of his family’s shop. Instead, his family faced harassment in various forms. In 2015, his son was accused in two robbery cases, leading Sumantha to send him to Malaysia in 2017 for safety.

Bahar also constructed a party office in Ramghat, Cumilla city, by illegally occupying 10 per cent of the land belonging to the District Freedom Fighters Command, where he built a 10-storey building. Golam Faruq, a freedom fighter from Cumilla, told Prothom Alo that Bahar forcibly constructed multi-storey buildings on this land, which is designated for freedom fighters. Despite reporting the encroachment to relevant government departments, no action was taken to stop Bahar.

At least ten additional instances of disputed land and pond grabbing have been reported in various parts of the city, all allegedly involving Bahar and his close associates. One such plan includes occupying 70 per cent of the land of Liberty Cinema Hall in Kandirparad for the construction of a multi-storey building. This land is originally vested property, and several Awami League leaders have claimed it was occupied through fake documents.

Cumilla resident and historian Ahsanul Kabir told Prothom Alo that Bahar has been embroiled in corruption in Cumilla over the past 15 years during the Awami League rule. He described Bahar as the epitome of crime, asserting that he dominated all areas of the city with total impunity.

*This report, originally published in Prothom Alo print and online edition, has been rewritten in English by Farjana Liakat