Former speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury detained, taken to DB office

Former Speaker of the Jatiya Sangsad, Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, has been detained by the Detective Branch (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police. She was picked up from her residence in Dhanmondi in the capital late Monday night.

DB Additional Commissioner Shafiqul Islam told Prothom Alo this morning that Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury had been detained and brought to the DB office. She is currently in DB custody.

However, the DB has not provided detailed information regarding the case or the specific reasons behind her detention.

She resigned as Speaker on 2 September, 2024—27 days after the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s government. After the Awami League came to power in the 2008 election, Abdul Hamid was elected Speaker. When he was later elected President, Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury was chosen as Speaker on 30 April, 2013, and had held the position continuously since then.

Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury is accused in a case related to violence during the July mass uprising. On 27 August, 2024, a murder case was filed against her and 17 others, including former Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi, over the death of goldsmith Muslim Uddin (38), who was shot in Rangpur.

The case was filed at the Metropolitan Kotwali Magistrate’s Court by the victim’s wife, Dilruba Akter (32), from the Purba Ganeshpur area of Rangpur city. Tipu Munshi has already been arrested in connection with the case and is currently in jail.

Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury was elected as a Member of Parliament from the Rangpur-6 constituency.