They are a dangerous fraud ring. Driven by greed for property, they have harassed me and my neighboring sister with false cases. They have filed over 200 cases across the country. They have repeatedly attempted to kill me. After my elder son, who was living in the USA, returned home, they had him murdered. We are in life-threatening danger under their grip. The mastermind behind the cases against me and the murder of my son is the fallen authoritarian government’s State Minister for Power and Energy, Nasrul Hamid Bipu. I demand justice from the government and the people of the country.
On Monday afternoon at the Moulvibazar Press Club Conference Hall, Shamimun Nahar (54), daughter of AKM Rashid Uddin a former secretary, US-based human rights activist, and founder chairman of Hopes Door Bangladesh (an organization working for overall development and for disadvantaged women and children) held the press conference. She was accompanied by another victim, social worker and human rights activist Fauzia Hasan (60).
In her written and oral statements, Shamimun Nahar said that she first connected with a woman named Umayra Islam Ima, a resident of Muslim Quarter area on Club Road in Moulvibazar town, through social media Facebook in late November 2020. Umayra told her she was involved in legal work at Moulvibazar District Judge Court.
They exchanged phone numbers and communicated frequently. Shamimun spoke about visiting the shrines of Hazrat Shahjalal (R:) and Hazrat Shah Paran (R:), and Umayra invited her to Moulvibazar to visit the shrine. Trusting her, Shamimun, accompanied by her acquaintance Mofizul Islam, took the Green Line bus to Sherpur on December 15, 2020, at 7 a.m. From there, Umayra picked them up in a private car and brought them to her house in Moulvibazar town.
After resting, Umayra said she would take Shamimun to the shrine around 10:30 a.m., heading towards Sakura Market (Mosque Market) in Moulvibazar (later understood not to be the shrine). Along the way, Umayra cunningly dropped off Mofizul Islam. Instead of going to the shrine, Umayra took Shamimun to a shop in Hatbazar area in the middle of town, where against her will she was forced to buy clothes and groceries worth nearly 500,000 Taka using Shamimun’s American credit card.
After returning to the car, Umayra suddenly pulled a pistol from a black bag, loaded it with six bullets, and threatened Shamimun by pressing the gun against her body, ordering her to obey all commands silently or face death. Earlier, a pre-planned conspiracy involving barrister Foyez and others was executed against her will. On that day, Umayra also opened a bank account in Shamimun’s name at NCC Bank, Moulvibazar, which was used for fraudulent activities, including deceiving people with promises to send them abroad. Umayra threatened Shamimun to send large sums of money to that account monthly.
The aim of this fraudulent scheme was to seize Shamimun’s family property worth nearly 50 billion Taka, including three houses and shops in Dhaka owned by her father. The mastermind behind this conspiracy is said to be her younger sister’s husband, Ibnul Hasan Khokon, and the former authoritarian government’s Power and Energy State Minister Nasrul Hamid Bipu.
Under their influence, Shamimun was brought to Moulvibazar and placed in danger, facing threats to her life. Other key members of the group include Umayra Islam Ima; Azmal Ali Shah Sentu, son of the caretaker of Boromchal Shah Kala Mazaar in Kulaura; Mamdud Hossain, chairman of Brahmanbazar Union and organizational secretary of Kulaura Upazila Awami League; two local lawyers; and many others both in Dhaka and abroad.
This group’s influence also led to the targeted and brutal murder of Shamimun’s elder son, Safayet Foraji (35), born and raised in the USA, in 2022. They continue to engage in mental, physical, and economic harassment with the aim of grabbing her property. They have repeatedly brought Shamimun and her family to Moulvibazar under false cases and warrants, plotting to kill them openly on the streets.
