Abdullah Al Mamun of Passport Department suspended

The Home Ministry has temporarily suspended Abdullah Al Mamun, a regional director of the Department of Immigration and Passports.

He was serving at the Sylhet Divisional Passport Office.

The Immigration-4 Branch of the Security Division of the home ministry issued a notification, signed by Senior Secretary Nasimul Ghani, in this regard on Sunday (April 27) following an order of the President.

The notification states that on February 17 of this year, the court accepted a charge sheet in a case filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on June 21, 2022. In this situation, Abdullah Al Mamun has been temporarily suspended under Section 39(2) of the Government Service Act, 2018.

Passport Department Director General Major General Nurul Anwar said, "The government has taken action against him for committing corruption. Anyone involved in corruption within the department will face similar punishment."

Investigations revealed that Abdullah Al Mamun often disregarded rules and regulations during his time as Director of the Dhaka Divisional Passport Office as he had the trust of former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and was close to former Inspector General of Police Benazir Ahmed.

Officials of the department alleged that disobeying orders from the Director General, Mamun threatened to file cases against the Additional Director General. Officials of not only the divisional office but also the headquarters were afraid of him.

In addition, a case is ongoing against him at the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) over the acquisition of a large amount of illegal assets. A charge sheet has already been filed in this case. Investigations have proven at least 15 serious allegations against him. The Passport Department has also sent a request to the home ministry for his dismissal from service.

According to the complaint submitted to the ministry, on January 27, 2023, Mamun disrupted the department’s quarterly meeting by loudly creating a commotion while the Additional Director General was speaking. Following this act of defiance, the department issued him a show-cause notice and later formed an investigation committee. The investigation is still ongoing.

On July 29, 2023, he was transferred from the Dhaka Divisional Passport Office to the Sylhet Divisional Passport Office.

Mentionable, Abdullah Al Mamun is an accused in a case filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) related to the illegal issuance of a passport for Benazir Ahmed.