Jamaat leader Major (retd) Akhtaruzzaman arrested over disorder, obstruction at Dhaka airport
He was arrested from his residence at House 35 on Road 10 in the Dhamal Kot area near the cantonment in the capital this evening.
Jamaat-e-Islami leader Major (retd) Akhtaruzzaman has been arrested by the Dhaka Metropolitan Police's Detective Branch (DB) over allegations of creating disorder and obstructing government officials at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.
He was arrested from his residence at House 35 on Road 10 in the Dhamal Kot area near the cantonment in the capital this evening (2 October), confirmed DB chief Additional Commissioner Md Shafiqul Islam.
He said Akhtaruzzaman would be handed over to Airport Police Station.
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Earlier in the morning, airport security officer Md Shahriar Alam Sajib filed a case against Akhtaruzzaman with Airport Police Station over the incident.
Akhtaruzzaman's message before arrest
Before his arrest, Akhtaruzzaman said on Facebook that DB police were taking him into custody and posted a video message.
In the video, he asked people to pray for him, saying he hoped to sacrifice his life while working for the rights of the people, particularly to protect the interests of expatriate Bangladeshis.
"I am with the struggle for people's rights and will remain so for the rest of my life," he said, adding that he would continue to stand by the people and work for them as long as he was alive.
Within an hour of the post, the video had 680 reactions and 101 comments and had been shared 161 times.
What the case says about the incident
According to the case statement, 34 Jamaat-e-Islami representatives and their family members arrived in Dhaka from Medina last night (1 October). Their flight landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 8:55pm and was parked at 9:08pm.
After completing immigration, the passengers went to luggage belt No. 8 to collect their baggage. The complaint says heavy passenger pressure led to a temporary shortage of luggage trolleys, resulting in a long queue.
Several protocol assistants allegedly tried to collect trolleys by breaking the queue, according to the case statement. Tensions later escalated over delays in receiving luggage and the unavailability of Zamzam water.
The complaint says Dhaka-5 MP Mohammad Kamal Hossain called airport Executive Director Group Captain SM Ragib Samad to the scene. When the executive director arrived and was speaking with those involved, Akhtaruzzaman allegedly approached him aggressively and verbally abused him.
The case statement further alleges that Akhtaruzzaman threatened to assault the executive director and remove him from the airport, while questioning his ability to perform his duties.
The situation was brought under control after Kamal Hossain moved the executive director to a safe distance, according to the complaint.
The complaint also alleges that Akhtaruzzaman later threatened people at the scene and used offensive language against the minister for civil aviation and tourism.
Several protocol assistants accompanying him allegedly recorded videos of the incident and threatened to post them on social media. When security supervisor Warrant Officer Mohammad Kamal Uddin asked them not to record videos in the airport's key point installation (KPI) area, Akhtaruzzaman allegedly verbally abused and physically assaulted him, according to the case.
The complaint further alleges that Akhtaruzzaman behaved aggressively towards a Biman Bangladesh Airlines representative who later arrived at the scene.
It also alleges that he threw bottles and containers of Zamzam water collected by other passengers from trolleys, causing damage.
The case accuses Akhtaruzzaman of obstructing government officials and security personnel from performing their duties, issuing threats, using abusive language, behaving aggressively and physically assaulting a security officer at the sensitive airport facility.
