After the anti-narcotics drive started on February 16, 2019 in the country, drug lord Shah Azam who engaged in yaba trading in the Hila union of Teknaf formally surrendered to the Home Minister Assaduzzaman. The kingpin was freed after spending two years in jail, but was found with 10,000 pieces of yaba within three months after his release.
Superintendent of Police (SP) of Cox’s Bazar Mahfuzul Islam said among 102 people who surrendered in 2019, 5 were already returned to the drug business after their release.
He added that the other defendants are already being investigated and that legal steps would be taken.
He said, “Those who have surrendered in 2019 need counseling. It’s very important to keep in touch with them; we will soon arrange a meeting with them so that we can hear from them.”
Additional director of directorate of narcotics in Chittagong region Mojibur Rahman Patwari said, “We are keeping a close look on the people who are out of jail. Legal actions will be taken if someone tries to get involved in drug business again.”
102 yaba drug dealers surrendered to home minister Md. Asaduzzaman khan on 16 February 2019 in the playground of Teknaf Pilot High School. Among them 8 are relatives of rulling party MP Abdur Rahman Badi.
After the campaign was halted, one after another got bail out of prison and went back to the drug industry.
Amongst the ones who were granted bail and went back to drug trafficking are Abdus Sukkur, Aminur Rahman, Nurul Huda, Shahed Rahman Nipu, Abdul Amin, Shafiqul Islam Shafiq, Faisal Rahman, Shah Alam, Abdur Rahman, Mozzammel Haque, Hamid Hossain, Md. Alam, Md. Ayub, Md. Russel, Nurul Amin, Abu Syed, Manjur Ali, Robiul Alam, Md. Siddique, Johur Alam, Hossain Ali and Shamsul Alam alias Shamsu. All of them are residents of Teknaf of Cox’s Bazar.
A resident of Teknaf’s Hila area, in condition to be remaining anonymous, said that many drug traders surrendered during the campaign in the fear of being in crossfire. They were locked up in jail for about 2 years but as soon as the campaign stopped they were back to the yaba business.
In 2019, at the playground of Teknaf High School playground, 102 individuals known as yaba dons surrendered, and submitted 3.5 lakh yaba, 30 local made guns and 70 rounds of bullets to the government. Following this incident 101 people were charged by the Cox Bazar’s district judge Mohammed Ismail on 27th February 2020. Russel was acquitted of the case as he passed away. The proceedings of the case were suddenly halted as there was no information on where the witnesses, and some of them were absent in hearing as well. After the case continued for 2 and half years, 10 witnesses were brought in for interrogating. The last scheduled date of the court was 29 September where no witnesses were present. Another date will be set on the end of this month.
Faridul Alam, a state prosecutor of Cox’s bazar’s said there were no credible witnesses present in the court and even if witnesses came forward, they showed a non-cooperative attitude. So, there’s no notable progress in the cases.
@The article published on print and online versions of The Bangladesh Pratidin on October 18, 2022 and rewritten in English by Ishrar Tabassum and Lutful Hoque
