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Some headway in Chittagong arms case
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The ongoing investigation into the five-year-old Chittagong arms seizure case has put the spotlight on several leaders of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), former ministers, and key functionaries of the erstwhile BNP- led four-party alliance (FPA) government. It also pointed the needle of suspicion at senior officials of the Pakistani High Commission (PHC) in Dhaka and Abdul Razzak Yaqub, the Dubai-based ARY group owner.
A clear breakthrough came with the interrogation of Cdr (Retd) Sahab Uddin, Director of Bangladesh’s premier intelligence agency National Security Intelligence (NSI). He was arrested on May 3 on the basis of statements made by Akbar Hussein Khan, a low level NSI, who told the investigators that he had hired trucks to carry the arms consignment to Maulavi Bazar.
Wg Cdr (Retd) Sahabuddin admitted during interrogation (May 9-14, 2009) revealed the involvement of Pakistan High Commission officials. He identified them as Shahid Mahmood, a Counselor and Brig Gen Moghis Uddin, Defense Attaché. According to him, four top functionaries were hand in glove with Pak officials in the entire smuggling mission.
‘Brig Gen (Retd) Abdur Rahim, Brig Gen A. S Shaukat, Brig Gen Wasim, Sqn Ldr Didar and Maj Liaqat had held series of talks with the Mahmood and Uddin on planning and execution of arms delivery to Indian insurgent group, United Liberation Front of Assam, (ULFA) through the river route till Anwara (in Chittagong) and later to Haluaghat (in Mymensingh) bordering India’. These strategy sessions were held in Dhaka and Chittagong. ULFA Commander-in-Chief Paresh Barua participated in these deliberations conducted by Pak diplomats and NSI officials. .
Sahabuddin’s confessions led to the arrest of two former NSI D-Gs, Maj Gen (Retd) Rezzaqul Haider Chowdhury and Brig Gen (Retd) Abdur Rahim.
Dubai based ARY group of companies had financed the arms smuggling. Investigators appear to believe that the ARY chief Abdul Razzak Yaqub used his visits to Dhaka for setting up ARY TV channel, as a cover for his meetings with Pak diplomats and their accomplices in the NSI operation. ‘Yaqub is said to be a Pakistani national. ‘He made all necessary payments to NSI officials’.
Washington Post says the ARY group is associated with the ISI and al Qaeda and is involved in smuggling of gold and the greenback. ARY’s linkage with al Qaeda was confirmed in 1998 following the bombing of US mission in Nairobi.
‘ARY smuggled out a large quantity of gold and US currency (dollar) from Afghanistan to Dubai before the fall of Taliban regime in Kabul’, the Washington Post reported on February 17, 2002. The mission was accomplished with the active cooperation of and assistance from ISI, the report said.
A Columbia District Court (United States) records show that ARY group Chairman also heads the World Memon Organisation (WMO), a Dubai based charitable organization very close to the Pakistani government. WMO maintains linkages with other Islamic charitable organizations and also with al Qaeda and other international terrorist networks. The Nairobi bombing blew the lid over ARY cover, sleuths aver.
ARY group set up a subsidiary, ARY Television Network for its TV forays. As its affiliate, ARY Bangla/ Desh TV made its debut on March 24, 2007. Salauddin Qader Chowdhury, SQC to his friends and admirers, launched the channel. A lawmaker from the BNP ranks, he is ‘a long standing lynchpin’ of ISI network in the country. The channel didn’t survive for long. It closed down within five minutes on Sept 6 on the orders of the then caretaker government.
SQC is known to have invested Tk 56 Crore in the TV Channel, a large share of which had been received by him from the ISI. Efforts are underway to breathe fresh air into the venture. Success has not come his way. The resurrection is planned as “CSB News”.
SQC figures in the Chittagong arms smuggling case. The entire consignment was smuggled into Bangladesh by vessels “MV Orient Freedom” and “QC Honour”. Both vessels owned by SQC.
BIG FISH IN THE NET?
Police investigating the case are confident of netting big fish. Several ministers and key functionaries of the BJP-led alliance government were involved in the ULFA arms racket backed by ISI, according to investigators. The name of State Minister for Home, Lutfozzaman Babar is mentioned in this connection. He is known to have participated in the meetings taken by Pak diplomats with NSI and ARY officials ‘to tie up the loose ends’.
Another name that keeps popping up is Matiur Rahman Nizami, the Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) chief, who was then the Minister for Industries. The smuggled arms consignment was delivered and seized at the jetty of Chittagong Urea Fertiliser Ltd (CUFL). The jetty was under his direct control.
On April 26, 2004, security agencies intercepted a microbus with crates of small arms including pistols and SMGs and ammunition on the Feni-Belonia route, close to Tripura border. The cargo was camouflaged under cigarettes and watermelons. It was a part of the shipment that evaded detection in the Chittagong arms haul on Apr 2, 2004.
The vehicle was promptly seized and was taken to the Feni police station. It was, however, released following the intervention of a retired army Major who also is a senior BNP leader. And under his instructions, the police escorted the bus with its cargo upto Chhagalnaiya from where the consignment was to be smuggled across the border into Tripura. Investigators identify the ‘leader’ as Syed Iskander, a brother of Khaleda Zia, who was the prime minister of the day.
Syed Iskander’s links with the ISI are well known. He patronises a group of rabidly anti-India course mates, many of whom were occupied key command positions in the Bangladesh army at that time.
BACKGROUND
Bowing to public outcry the Khaleda Zia government set up a committee to investigate the Chittagong arms seizure case. The committee opposed permission to FBI (of the US) or Interpol to talks to the arrested suspects. The case has international ramifications and outcome of probe by FBI or Interpol could have disastrous consequences. The Committee also asked the Prime Minister Khaleda Zia not to allow the Parliamentary Standing Committee to participate in the investigation. The probe went into cold storage. The Army-backed dispensation that succeeded the BNP led alliance government in 2007 revived the case.
A clear breakthrough came with the interrogation of Cdr (Retd) Sahab Uddin, Director of Bangladesh’s premier intelligence agency National Security Intelligence (NSI). He was arrested on May 3 on the basis of statements made by Akbar Hussein Khan, a low level NSI, who told the investigators that he had hired trucks to carry the arms consignment to Maulavi Bazar.
Wg Cdr (Retd) Sahabuddin admitted during interrogation (May 9-14, 2009) revealed the involvement of Pakistan High Commission officials. He identified them as Shahid Mahmood, a Counselor and Brig Gen Moghis Uddin, Defense Attaché. According to him, four top functionaries were hand in glove with Pak officials in the entire smuggling mission.
‘Brig Gen (Retd) Abdur Rahim, Brig Gen A. S Shaukat, Brig Gen Wasim, Sqn Ldr Didar and Maj Liaqat had held series of talks with the Mahmood and Uddin on planning and execution of arms delivery to Indian insurgent group, United Liberation Front of Assam, (ULFA) through the river route till Anwara (in Chittagong) and later to Haluaghat (in Mymensingh) bordering India’. These strategy sessions were held in Dhaka and Chittagong. ULFA Commander-in-Chief Paresh Barua participated in these deliberations conducted by Pak diplomats and NSI officials. .
Sahabuddin’s confessions led to the arrest of two former NSI D-Gs, Maj Gen (Retd) Rezzaqul Haider Chowdhury and Brig Gen (Retd) Abdur Rahim.
Dubai based ARY group of companies had financed the arms smuggling. Investigators appear to believe that the ARY chief Abdul Razzak Yaqub used his visits to Dhaka for setting up ARY TV channel, as a cover for his meetings with Pak diplomats and their accomplices in the NSI operation. ‘Yaqub is said to be a Pakistani national. ‘He made all necessary payments to NSI officials’.
Washington Post says the ARY group is associated with the ISI and al Qaeda and is involved in smuggling of gold and the greenback. ARY’s linkage with al Qaeda was confirmed in 1998 following the bombing of US mission in Nairobi.
‘ARY smuggled out a large quantity of gold and US currency (dollar) from Afghanistan to Dubai before the fall of Taliban regime in Kabul’, the Washington Post reported on February 17, 2002. The mission was accomplished with the active cooperation of and assistance from ISI, the report said.
A Columbia District Court (United States) records show that ARY group Chairman also heads the World Memon Organisation (WMO), a Dubai based charitable organization very close to the Pakistani government. WMO maintains linkages with other Islamic charitable organizations and also with al Qaeda and other international terrorist networks. The Nairobi bombing blew the lid over ARY cover, sleuths aver.
ARY group set up a subsidiary, ARY Television Network for its TV forays. As its affiliate, ARY Bangla/ Desh TV made its debut on March 24, 2007. Salauddin Qader Chowdhury, SQC to his friends and admirers, launched the channel. A lawmaker from the BNP ranks, he is ‘a long standing lynchpin’ of ISI network in the country. The channel didn’t survive for long. It closed down within five minutes on Sept 6 on the orders of the then caretaker government.
SQC is known to have invested Tk 56 Crore in the TV Channel, a large share of which had been received by him from the ISI. Efforts are underway to breathe fresh air into the venture. Success has not come his way. The resurrection is planned as “CSB News”.
SQC figures in the Chittagong arms smuggling case. The entire consignment was smuggled into Bangladesh by vessels “MV Orient Freedom” and “QC Honour”. Both vessels owned by SQC.
BIG FISH IN THE NET?
Police investigating the case are confident of netting big fish. Several ministers and key functionaries of the BJP-led alliance government were involved in the ULFA arms racket backed by ISI, according to investigators. The name of State Minister for Home, Lutfozzaman Babar is mentioned in this connection. He is known to have participated in the meetings taken by Pak diplomats with NSI and ARY officials ‘to tie up the loose ends’.Another name that keeps popping up is Matiur Rahman Nizami, the Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) chief, who was then the Minister for Industries. The smuggled arms consignment was delivered and seized at the jetty of Chittagong Urea Fertiliser Ltd (CUFL). The jetty was under his direct control.
On April 26, 2004, security agencies intercepted a microbus with crates of small arms including pistols and SMGs and ammunition on the Feni-Belonia route, close to Tripura border. The cargo was camouflaged under cigarettes and watermelons. It was a part of the shipment that evaded detection in the Chittagong arms haul on Apr 2, 2004.
The vehicle was promptly seized and was taken to the Feni police station. It was, however, released following the intervention of a retired army Major who also is a senior BNP leader. And under his instructions, the police escorted the bus with its cargo upto Chhagalnaiya from where the consignment was to be smuggled across the border into Tripura. Investigators identify the ‘leader’ as Syed Iskander, a brother of Khaleda Zia, who was the prime minister of the day.
Syed Iskander’s links with the ISI are well known. He patronises a group of rabidly anti-India course mates, many of whom were occupied key command positions in the Bangladesh army at that time.
BACKGROUND
Bowing to public outcry the Khaleda Zia government set up a committee to investigate the Chittagong arms seizure case. The committee opposed permission to FBI (of the US) or Interpol to talks to the arrested suspects. The case has international ramifications and outcome of probe by FBI or Interpol could have disastrous consequences. The Committee also asked the Prime Minister Khaleda Zia not to allow the Parliamentary Standing Committee to participate in the investigation. The probe went into cold storage. The Army-backed dispensation that succeeded the BNP led alliance government in 2007 revived the case.
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