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An influential erstwhile subject wide who played a cardinal relation successful 2007 successful installing an army-backed interim authorities replacing a caretaker one, which was presumed to beryllium inclined to the BNP, present headed by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, has been arrested, constabulary said connected Tuesday (March 24, 2026).
Police said their men successful plain apparel arrested retired Lieutenant General Masud Uddin Chowdhury, 1 of the cardinal figures instrumental successful changing the authorities successful 2007 and installing an interim 1 that ran the state for the consequent 2 years until the 2008 elections.
“The detective subdivision arrested him (Chowdhury) past nighttime from his Baridhara residence (in Dhaka). He has been arrested successful narration to 5 cases which person been lodged against him,” the branch's chief, Shafiqul Isam, told reporters.
He, however, did not explicate the charges against Chowdhury, who aboriginal served arsenic Bangladesh's ambassador to Australia and subsequently became a subordinate of parliament from the Jatiya Party.
The Jatiya Party was an electoral state of deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s present disbanded Awami League, which won with a two-thirds bulk successful the December 2008 elections.
The military-backed interim authorities pursuing a virtual behind-the-scenes service coup known arsenic 1/11 is believed to beryllium intended to enforce a “minus 2 formula” to discard 2 apical leaders of Awami League and Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Hasina and her arch-rival ex-premier Khaleda Zia.
During the astir two-year regularisation of the then-interim government, incumbent premier Rahman excessively was arrested, allegedly tortured successful custody and accused of respective transgression and graft charges.
Chowdhury was past the coordinator of the National Coordination Committee connected Serious Crimes, nether which anti-corruption drives were carried out.
Mr. Rahman yet was exiled successful the U.K., wherever helium spent 17 years and returned location successful December past year, 5 days earlier his parent Zia’s decease aft prolonged ailments.
The BNP entrusted him with the complaint of heading the enactment aft Zia’s demise, and came to powerfulness successful the February 12 election, grabbing two-thirds of parliamentary seats nether his leadership.
During the erstwhile interim authorities of Muhammad Yunus, a tribunal past July ordered the confiscation of Chowdhury’s movable property.
The ex-general’s apprehension came arsenic the then-army main General Moyeen U Ahmed has been exiled successful the United States, and astatine slightest 2 influential subject officials staying abroad.
