Azizunnahar, Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) of Companiganj, Sylhet, has been transferred for failing to prevent sand stones looting incident on Monday.
She was posted to Fenchuganj, Sylhet, where Mohammad Shafiqul Islam has been appointed as the new UNO of Companiganj.
Questions arose regarding UNO Azizunnahar’s role in the sand theft incident at Volaganj, Companiganj Upazila. Instead of acting responsibly to stop the looting, allegations surfaced that she was complicit in the activities. This issue sparked extensive discussion and criticism on social media over the past few days. Media reports about the Sadapathar looting had been published for several months, yet no effective action was taken by UNO Azizunnahar.
The new UNO of Companiganj, Mohammad Shafiqul Islam, is an officer of the 36th BCS (Admin) cadre and previously served as UNO of Fenchuganj.
Similarly, on Monday, Sylhet’s Deputy Commissioner Sher Mahbub Murad was also transferred. The new Deputy Commissioner of Sylhet is former RAB magistrate Md. Sarwar Alam, who previously served as the private secretary to Adviser Asif Nazrul of the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment at the rank of Deputy Secretary.
Earlier, on Sunday, during an event in Dhaka, Environment Adviser Syeda Rezwana Hasan accused the local administration of collusion in the Sadapathar looting. The following day, UNO Azizunnahar was transferred from Companiganj to Fenchuganj, and Mohammad Shafiqul Islam was appointed as the UNO of Companiganj.
Locally, it is alleged that during her tenure as UNO in Companyganj, Azizunnahar developed a close relationship with Bahar Ahmad Ruhel, joint secretary of the Sylhet district branch of the Jubo Dal. Bahar Ahmad is reportedly one of the top looters of the Volaganj stone quarry and used to collect extortion on behalf of the UNO. Public rumors recently suggested that the money collected in the looting of Sadapathar kept UNO Azizunnahar inactive.
