'Stay with me for five years, your life will change': Ex-driver accuses Gazi Nazrul of inducement
Former driver Obaidur alleges offers were made after discovering Nazrul’s alleged affair.
Former personal driver to expelled Jamaat-e-Islami lawmaker (Satkhira-4) Gazi Nazrul Islam, Obaidur Rahman, has accused the former MP of offering him money and employment to remain silent after he discovered Nazrul's alleged relationship with a young woman.
Obaidur, who is the maternal uncle of the woman whom the former lawmaker has introduced as his second wife, alleged that Gazi Nazrul also told him, "Stay with me for five years, your life will change."
He made the allegations at a press conference at the Crime Reporters Association of Bangladesh (CRAB) office in Segunbagicha yesterday (22 August), where he sought withdrawal of a case filed against him, protested an alleged attack and sought security for himself and his family.
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According to Obaidur, he first learned about Gazi Nazrul's relationship with the woman on 18 June. He spoke to the woman the following day, when she allegedly acknowledged the relationship.
On 20 June, Obaidur went to the MP hostel with the woman and confronted Gazi Nazrul about the matter.
"Gazi Nazrul acknowledged the relationship and offered me money. He also offered me the opportunity to work as his personal assistant and driver," Obaidur claimed.
He said he did not accept the money but later agreed to work as the MP's driver to ensure the woman's safety and collect information and evidence concerning the allegations.
Obaidur claimed that he stayed with Gazi Nazrul from 6 to 13 July and gathered information about his activities during that period.
He further alleged that he saw Gazi Nazrul and the woman in an "private moment" at a coffee shop near Pallabi metro station on 22 June and at a training centre in Mirpur-12 on 9 July. He claimed CCTV footage of the incidents was in his possession.
The controversy surrounding Gazi Nazrul began on 20 July after CCTV footage showing him in an intimate moment with a woman went viral on social media.
Gazi Nazrul later said the woman, identified as Mst Mariam Begum, was his second wife. In a social media post, he said they had married on 17 June with the consent of his first wife.
The lawmaker also alleged that while he and his family were staying in Dhaka's Moghbazar area, his driver and a relative of his second wife brought outsiders to hold them hostage and demand money.
He claimed that after the alleged extortion attempt failed, the group obtained the CCTV footage and circulated it online due to previous enmity.
Statements from Gazi Nazrul's first wife, his claimed second wife and father-in-law were later circulated on social media. They described the matter as a family issue and alleged that the controversy was part of a conspiracy.
Obaidur alleged that on 13 July, after travelling outside Dhaka with the woman, he contacted Gazi Nazrul while returning to the capital.
He said that, following the MP's instructions, he met the woman's father and a man named Aminur in Khilkhet.
Later that night, Obaidur alleged that the woman's father and Aminur attacked him at his home and attempted to strangle him.
He said he was admitted to the emergency department of Kurmitola General Hospital at 12:38am in an injured condition.
On 21 July, Obaidur filed an attempted murder case with Pallabi Police Station against Gazi Nazrul and four others. The other accused are Aminur Rahman, Masum Billah, Mostasim Billah and Rakibul Hasan.
The case alleges that Obaidur was assaulted and subjected to an attempted strangulation after protesting against Gazi Nazrul's alleged relationship with the woman and being suspected of involvement in leaking the video.
The case was later transferred to the Detective Branch for investigation. Aminur Rahman was arrested in connection with the case and was subsequently granted bail.
Gazi Nazrul obtained eight weeks' anticipatory bail from the High Court in the case on 10 August.
Counter-case against Obaidur
Obaidur said a separate case was filed against him on 2 August over allegations of abduction, human trafficking and extortion.
He said the case was filed by his sister and the woman's mother and is currently being investigated by the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI).
Obaidur alleged that he had been threatened to withdraw the case and that his mother and other family members had been forced to leave their home because of security concerns.
He said he filed a general diary with Pallabi Police Station on 20 August over the alleged threats.
Obaidur claimed he has medical records, case documents and other evidence related to the allegations and urged journalists to independently investigate the matter and establish the facts.
