Sylhet, Sept 06 (V7N) — A man has accused a BNP leader and his relatives of forcibly taking him from the road, assaulting him, threatening him with death, taking Tk 2 lakh in cash and forcing him to sign blank stamp papers in Golapganj of Sylhet.

The allegation was made by Md Abdul Qayyum, 30, son of Abdul Azad of Fazilpur village in the Ranaping area of Golapganj upazila. He filed a written complaint with Golapganj Model Police Station on Saturday, Aug. 29.

According to the complaint, Qayyum borrowed Tk 2 lakh in cash from Shakil Ahmed Chowdhury of Sherpur village at around 11:15am on Aug. 29 and was returning home.

When he reached in front of the house of Ashfaq Ahmed Chowdhury, vice-president of the Golapganj Upazila BNP, in the Sherpur area of Ranaping, Ashfaq’s younger brothers Sharif Ahmed, 40, and Kashem Ahmed, 35, along with Ashfaq’s son Hamza Ahmed, 22, allegedly stopped him and took him inside their house.

Qayyum alleged that he was confined to a room and beaten. He claimed that he sustained serious injuries, including a broken leg, after allegedly being struck with iron rods.

He further alleged that the accused took Tk 2 lakh from him and forced him to sign blank stamp papers. He also alleged that he was threatened with death.

Following the incident, leaders and activists of the Golapganj Sadar Union BNP and its affiliated organisations reportedly protested against the alleged assault.

Qayyum alleged that Ashfaq Ahmed subsequently used his influence to file a case against five people who protested the incident at Golapganj Model Police Station on Sept. 2.

Those named in the case include the injured Qayyum; Kamrul Islam Chowdhury, 50, president of Golapganj Sadar Union BNP; Moudud Chowdhury Sumon, 40, convener of the Golapganj Upazila Jubo Dal and joint secretary of the union BNP; Sultan Mahmud, 34, joint secretary of Sylhet Law College Chhatra Dal; and Shakil Ahmed Chowdhury, 33, a local Jubo Dal leader. Seven other unidentified people were also named in the case.

The incident has reportedly created tension in the area. On Sept. 4, another protest meeting was held at Chaughari Bazar, where local residents and BNP leaders protested what they described as a false case filed against the protesters.

Speaking at the meeting, Kamrul Islam Chowdhury accused Ashfaq Ahmed of repeatedly filing what he described as false cases against innocent people since Aug. 5 and allegedly using such cases to intimidate and extort money from them.

He further alleged that local residents had become frustrated over what he described as a pattern of harassment and that people were now being taken to Ashfaq’s house and assaulted. He said that those who protested were also being targeted with lawsuits and intimidation.

People from different sections of the community, including residents from several wards of the union, attended the protest meeting. They condemned the alleged activities of Ashfaq Ahmed and his associates and called for those responsible to be brought to justice.

When contacted, the officer-in-charge of Golapganj Model Police Station said the police had received the complaint.

“We have received the complaint. We will investigate the matter and take legal action against those responsible if the allegations are substantiated,” the officer said.

The allegations against Ashfaq Ahmed and his relatives could not be independently verified. Their response to the allegations was not immediately available.

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