1/11 caretaker govt figure Masud Uddin Chowdhury put on 5-day remand

Former army officer and 1/11-era figure Masud Uddin Chowdhury has been placed on five-day remand for interrogation after being arrested in a human trafficking case.

Metropolitan Magistrate Aminul Islam Junaid granted the remand on Tuesday afternoon, after Chowdhury was produced before a Dhaka court under tight security.

Dhaka Metropolitan Detective Police DB had requested a five-day remand to question him. During the hearing, a state counsel told the court, "The person this officer once tried to torture and kill is now the country's prime minister."

DB chief Shafiqul Islam previously told media that Chowdhury faces a total of five cases, including human trafficking, fraud, extortion and murder. An arrest warrant was already outstanding against him in an anti-discrimination case filed in Feni.

A DB team led by the chief arrested Chowdhury on Monday night from his residence at House 153, Lane 2, in Dhaka's Baridhara DOHS area. He was then taken to the DB office for questioning.

Masud Uddin Chowdhury was elected as a member of parliament from the Feni-3 constituency in the 2018 general election on a Jatiya Party ticket. He had initially collected the nomination form for the Awami League but later switched parties to contest the election.

The former military officer came into prominence during the 1/11 political changeover in 2007 and served as the coordinator of the National Coordination Committee for Combating Serious Crimes. 

Following the 2008 general election, he was appointed as Bangladesh's High Commissioner to Australia, a post he held for an extended period. After retiring from the army, he became involved in various businesses, including manpower export.