Staff Reporter :
BNP Standing Committee Member and former MP Salahuddin Ahmed returned home on Sunday after spending nine years in India.
Salahuddin Ahmed, who also served as a former State Minister, arrived at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on an Air India flight at approximately 2:15 PM.
He was warmly received at the airport’s VIP lounge by BNP Vice-Chairman Barkatullah Bulu, Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, and Joint Secretary General Khairul Kabir Khokon, who presented him with a floral wreath.
Salahuddin’s wife, Hasina Ahmed, along with several thousand leaders and activists of the BNP and its associate bodies, also gathered at the airport to welcome him.
The Assistant High Commissioner of Bangladesh in Guwahati issued his travel pass on 6th August, facilitating his return to the country.
The BNP had previously alleged that Salahuddin Ahmed was abducted from his home in Uttara, Dhaka, on 10th March 2015 by individuals posing as members of detective agencies.
After being missing for 62 days, Salahuddin Ahmed was found in Shillong, the capital of the Indian state of Meghalaya, on 11th May 2015. He was subsequently arrested for entering India without valid documents and was charged under the Foreigners Act.
A court in Shillong acquitted him of the charges related to his illegal entry on 26th October 2018. After a prolonged legal process, this verdict was upheld by a higher court on 28th February 2023, which also directed the Indian government to facilitate his return to Bangladesh.
