Although the Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Mofizur Rahman allegedly involved in  bribery, corruption, and embezzlement, was officially transferred to Rangpur but he cleverly managed to remain in Bishwambharpur, Sunamganj.

It is learnt UNO, Mofizur Rahman, was transferred (deputed) from Bishwambharpur Upazila in Sunamganj district of Sylhet Division to the Office of the Divisional Commissioner of Rangpur on May 24.

According to order issued by the Ministry of Public Administration, Field Administration Unit -2, signed by Deputy Secretary Aminul Islam on behalf of the President, the officer of the 35th BCS batch was transferred from Bishwambharpur to  Rangpur Divisional Commissioner’s office.

On Tuesday afternoon, UNO Mofizur Rahman himself acknowledged the transfer and stated that he would join the Rangpur Divisional Commissioner’s office after the new UNO takes charge and after receiving clearance from higher authorities. So  for the time being, he is not leaving Bishwambharpur, he added.

It is mentioned that he  joined Bishwambharpur Upazila as UNO on September 26, 2023. Recently, complaints have been lodged with the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Chairman by local residents Shafiqul Islam and others. The complainants have sent written allegations with supporting documents of various bribery, corruption, and irregularities by the UNO. 

Following this, a memorandum was submitted to the Deputy Commissioner by aggrieved residents of the upazila, labeling the UNO as corrupt and demanding his immediate removal. In the complaint submitted to the ACC Chairman, the personal bank account statement of the UNO was included. It was also alleged that Mofizur Rahman was directly involved in various irregularities including bribery, corruption, border smuggling, and illegal extraction of state resources such as sand and stone.

According to the written complaint submitted to the ACC Chairman, UNO Mofizur Rahman deposited Tk 6,730,391 in his Dutch-Bangla Bank account (branch code) as of April 11. This amount is said to be inconsistent with a government officer’s legitimate income. The complaint further claims that the source of the funds deposited into the UNO’s account within three days after August 5 is suspicious.

The complaint also mentioned  that before August 5, in the border smuggling-prone areas of Bishwambharpur Upazila, during the fascist Awami League government, UNO Mofizur had secret dealings with smuggling networks in collusion with ruling party leaders. Goods such as sugar, cosmetics, spices, food items, clothing, and livestock (cows, buffaloes, camels) were smuggled from India evading taxes, with Mofizur’s covert involvement.

Although there is already a library at the Upazila Multipurpose Center, another library was tactically established next to the Upazila Election Office with the aim of misappropriating a large sum of government funds.

It is worth noting that a human chain was recently organized at Karent Bazar in the upazila under the banner of local residents, demanding an investigation into the UNO’s bribery and corruption and calling for his removal. Later, in an attempt to suppress this movement, the UNO hired local thugs. These individuals, identifying themselves as leaders of the Jubo Dal, Coordinators, and Chhatra Dal, attacked the protesters.

At least 10 people were injured in this incident. Protesters alleged that a faction of local BNP was given the opportunity to engage in illegal sand business in the much-talked-about Dhopajan and Jadukata rivers by the UNO. They claimed to have paid lakhs of taka to the UNO, while also making a large profit themselves.

Investigations revealed that Mofizur joined Bishwambharpur Upazila in September 2023. His home is in Sadirchar, Bajitpur Upazila, Kishoreganj. After a change in government, he aligned himself with the BNP faction. He developed good relationships with local smugglers, black marketeers, and sand mafias. A statement of his Dutch-Bangla Bank account received by The Country Today  reveals a deposit of nearly Tk 6.9 million, which is inconsistent with his income and exposes sensational details of his illegal earnings, as reported by a special agency.

The bank records show that on December 11, 2017, while serving as an executive magistrate in Pirojpur Sadar, he opened the private account (No. 2641510015637) at a private bank and deposited Tk 3,238,000 at the time. On August 8, he deposited another Tk 2 million. Due to new banking transaction restrictions imposed after August 5, he could not deposit the entire Tk 2 million at once, so he did it in 11 installments. A mobile number was recorded as the depositor.

It was found that the mobile number belongs to Md. Alal Uddin of Bishwambharpur. When asked, Alal Uddin said, “I was working on the master roll at the UNO office in Bishwambharpur. On August 8, UNO Sir gave me Tk 2 million and asked me to deliver it to the bank manager. I took the money in the morning, and the manager noted down my name and number. I believe my number was linked as the depositor online. I was just following UNO Sir’s instructions, I know nothing more.”

Further investigation revealed that some Union Parishad chairmen, known to be close to the previous government, were involved in border smuggling and sand businesses. They used to share large sums of money with the UNO. After the change in government, some individuals identifying with BNP became involved in the illegal sand business, and Mofizur co-opted them. Additionally, during the previous government’s tenure, he embezzled a large amount of money from TR-Kabikha and rural infrastructure development projects by showing fake schemes.

A special report on the UNO's bribery scandal revealed that Mofizur spent Tk 3 million to construct an unnecessary dining room in front of his residence. He spent Tk 700,000 to build a ghatla for beautifying a pond. He also bought several small boats with lakhs of taka to float on the pond. On paper, he spent nearly Tk 10 million from government funds to build just two rooms, thereby misusing public funds. Despite having a rich library at the Upazila Multipurpose Center, he created another public library near the Upazila Election Office to create scope for fund embezzlement. There are also irregularities in the tendering processes for these projects.

The reason why Mofizur is unwilling to leave Bishwambharpur, according to aggrieved citizens of the upazila, is because he previously made money through bribes from various government allocations, including embankment construction in haors, TR, Kabikha, and ADP funds. With the June closing approaching, he intends to embezzle more funds from upcoming projects, which is why he remains in Bishwambharpur despite the transfer.

When asked, Bishwambharpur’s UNO Mofizur Rahman claimed that a conspiracy was being staged against him and dismissed the allegations as false. He added that higher authorities would look into the complaints.