Court grants three-day remand for ex-MP Masud Uddin Chowdhury

A court has granted permission to take former caretaker government official and former member of parliament Masud Uddin Chowdhury on remand for a third consecutive time. He will be interrogated in police custody.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Didarul Alam granted a three-day remand on Saturday, April 4, prosecution SI Roknuzzaman said.

Chowdhury was arrested from Baridhara DOHS area in the capital on March 23 in a case filed over embezzlement of huge amounts of money through syndicate and human trafficking. He was first taken on a five-day remand, followed by a six-day remand. Fresh remand has now been granted.

DB Police SI Md Rayhanur Rahman, the investigating officer, applied for a four-day remand, stating that while important information was obtained during previous remands, further interrogation is needed for the investigation.

The state lawyer argued that full information about the syndicate involved in large-scale embezzlement and human trafficking has not yet been uncovered, requiring further interrogation of the accused.

The defence lawyer sought cancellation of remand and bail, arguing that despite the accused being on remand for a long period, it is not clear what progress has been made in the investigation. He also requested the court to consider the accused's age and illness.

After hearing both sides, the court granted a three-day remand.

Masud Uddin Chowdhury was elected MP from Feni-3 constituency on a Jatiya Party nomination in the 11th National Parliamentary Election in 2018. He also served as managing director of a recruiting agency.

The case alleges that he was involved in embezzling huge amounts of money by influencing the manpower export sector through a syndicate, as well as human trafficking. Several other influential individuals are also accused in the case.