The army has detained two leaders of the BNP and the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement and handed them to police over allegations of extorting money from a buffalo trader at Jatrapur haat in Kurigram Sadar upazila. The trader later filed an extortion case against them.

An army team detained them on Tuesday night (27 May) and handed them to the police station. On Wednesday police showed the two as arrested and produced them in court.

The arrested are Mahabubur Rahman (53), convener of the Kurigram Sadar upazila BNP and former chairman of Belgachha union, and Alamgir Hossain (27), an organiser of the district Anti-Discrimination Student Movement.

Sources said BNP leader Mahabubur Rahman won the lease of Jatrapur haat as the highest bidder, and several leaders of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement took shares in it. But without obtaining the upazila administration's office order, they began collecting money from buyers and sellers at the market.

According to the case, a trader named Anwar Hossain Azad from Feni bought 17 buffaloes at Jatrapur haat on Tuesday (27 May). BNP leader Mahabubur Rahman and Anti-Discrimination leader Alamgir collected Tk 8,500 from him as toll but gave him no sale invoice. Although he told them he could face trouble on the road transporting the animals without an invoice, the market people gave him no valid papers.

With no other option, the trader informed the army. An army team found the allegation true, detained the two and handed them to police. The trader then filed an extortion case at Kurigram Sadar police station, and police produced the accused in court on Wednesday.

Several BNP and Anti-Discrimination Movement leaders went to Kurigram Sadar police station that night and lobbied hard for the pair's release, but as the matter had become public, police declined to free them.

Kurigram Sadar police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Habibullah said a case had been filed over the forcible, illegal collection of money, and the accused had been shown arrested and sent to court.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.