Local BNP, AL, Jamaat, NCP, admin united in looting Sada Pathor: ACC

ACC findings 

• From DC to Police, administration facilitated plunder
• 42 politicians involved; Jamaat, BNP, NCP allied in the plundering
• Fixed bribe rates, shared by admin and police
• BGB officers turn blind eye for Tk500 per boat

On the political stage, they are fierce rivals, trading barbs over election dates and proportional representation. Yet in the Sada Pathor looting, a rare political unity has been witnessed in Sylhet, where BNP and Jamaat leaders stood shoulder to shoulder in crime.

A recent Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) probe has also found traces of involvement of the newly formed National Citizen Party (NCP) leaders. Even Awami League leaders, though legally banned and politically sidelined, have shares in the looting, the report indicates. 

The report uncovered direct and indirect links of 53 individuals, including political leaders, government officials, and businessmen, to the illegal extraction of stones from this protected tourism site. 

Despite being a protected tourism site, over 80% of Sadapathor's stones have been looted since 5 August last year, the day of  Hasina's ouster, with theft escalating in the past three months under local administrators' and influential actors' patronage, the ACC report states.

Ashraf Uddin, ACC's assistant director at Sylhet office, confirmed evidence of widespread involvement of members of various political parties, while the implicated political parties have publicly denied their roles, raising questions of accountability at the highest local levels. 

The findings, submitted to the watchdog's headquarters on 16 August following site inspections on 13 August, have ignited public uproar. ACC Deputy Director Sadat said that further investigation is ongoing. 

Contacted yesterday, ACC Director General Akhtar Hossain said the investigation team found primary evidence of corruption in the Sada Pathor affairs and has submitted a report requesting further inquiry. 

"The commission will verify the matter and decide on the next course of action," he said.

Yesterday, Jamaat and NCP leaders held a press conference denying involvement, while the previous evening, BNP leaders also rejected allegations of their role.

From DC to Police: Sylhet administration under fire

A copy of the submitted report, obtained by TBS from an official source, names several senior Sylhet administration officials.

When asked about administrative involvement, Divisional Commissioner Khan Md Reza-un-Nabi stated, "If any official is found guilty of looting, action will be taken." 

However, the ACC report lists the Divisional Commissioner himself among the accomplices.

Other officials named include former Sylhet DC Sher Mahbub Murad, and four former Companiganj UNOs: Abida Sultana, Urmi Roy, Md Abul Hasnat, and Azizunnahar. 

Also implicated are Sylhet Police Superintendent Md Mahbubur Rahman, Companiganj OC Uzair Al Mahmud Adnan, and officials from the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB).

Prior to the report's submission, major administrative reshuffles had already occurred: DC Sher Mahbub Murad was made OSD, and Companiganj UNO Azizunnahar was transferred. Other officials named in the report, however, remain in their positions.

Last Sunday, Environment Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan also acknowledged that the local administration bears responsibility for the stone looting. She stated that action will be taken against them.

42 politicians named; leaders deny involvement

The report identifies 42 politicians and businessmen alongside admin and police officials, while involvement of a few journalists and others is still pending verification. Twenty BNP leaders are listed, including Sylhet Mahanagar acting president Rezaul Hasan Quayes Lodi and general secretary Imdad Hossain Chowdhury.

Both of the BNP leaders denied involvement. Lodi described his inclusion as conspiratorial, insisting he only supported legal stone lifting, while Chowdhury challenged the ACC to prove his involvement, warning of legal action otherwise.

Two Jamaat leaders are also named: Mahanagar Ameer Md Fakhrul Islam and district secretary Zainal Abedin. Fakhrul Islam rejected the claims as "baseless and politically motivated," asserting that Jamaat has always opposed looting.

NCP leaders, district coordinator Nazim Uddin and mahanagar coordinator Abu Sadeq Md Khairul Islam Chowdhury, were likewise named but denied involvement.

The report also names seven Awami League activists, none of whom were available for comment.

Who let the heist happen?

The ACC report paints a disturbing picture of systemic negligence and collusion in Sylhet's Sada Pathor stone looting. It first faults the Bureau of Mineral Development for failing to enforce the 2012 Mining Regulations, allowing illegal extraction to continue unabated.

Divisional Commissioner Reza-un-Nabi is implicated for prioritising illegal business interests over state resources. 

The report cites a July 8 meeting where he reportedly remarked, "If stone can be extracted elsewhere in the country, why not Sylhet?" Investigators identified such statements as encouraging illicit mining despite government bans.

Former DC Sher Mahbub Murad is censured for negligence and failing to protect the tourism site, while successive UNOs reportedly took only token measures. 

Police Superintendent Mahbubur Rahman is held responsible for ignoring Home Ministry directives issued in April to halt illegal extraction.

The report details the scale of corruption: each illegally extracted truckload of roughly 500 cubic feet of stone was valued at Tk91,000, excluding transport. Of this, Tk10,000 per truck went to police and administrative officials, split evenly between the two, while Tk81,000 went to the illegal extractors. 

Each boat used in extraction paid Tk1,000 in bribes, shared equally between police and administration.

The Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) is also held accountable in the ACC report. Despite three BGB posts located within 500 meters of the site, some of its personnel reportedly allegedly looters to operate freely in exchange for bribes. 

BGB members permitted boats to enter for Tk500 each and did not intervene during stone extraction, found the graft watchdog. 

With accountability under the spotlight, the public waits to see if the administration and ACC will take decisive action to punish those responsible and safeguard state resources, or if this investigation, like the looting itself, will become yet another missed opportunity for justice.