Records reopened as Mozaffar held after 45 years

The long shadow cast by the assassination of former President Ziaur Rahman has returned to the spotlight, as the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT)-2 ordered the production of retired Major Mozaffar Hossain in connection with a separate case involving alleged crimes against humanity during the July 2024 mass uprising.

The tribunal’s directive comes just days after the arrest of the 77-year-old former army officer, one of the last remaining fugitive convicts in the 30 May 1981 assassination of President Ziaur Rahman—an event widely regarded as one of the bloodiest and most consequential political killings in Bangladesh’s history.

Mozaffar Hossain, accused of directly participating in the deadly attack at the Chattogram Circuit House, spent nearly 45 years evading arrest before
being detained by the Detective Branch (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police from a hideout in Banani DOHS on 16 July.

He was handed over to the Military Police the following day as legal proceedings began.

His arrest has also revived efforts to trace the long-missing records of the Ziaur Rahman assassination case, raising the prospect that one of the country’s most significant unresolved chapters could once again come under judicial scrutiny.

The original murder case, filed with Kotwali Police Station in Chattogram, effectively stalled after the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), despite seeking 173 extensions over nearly 20 years, submitted a final report instead of a charge sheet, citing insufficient evidence.

The court accepted the report, and the case records were subsequently consigned to the archives.

Chattogram Metropolitan Public Prosecutor Mafizul Haque Bhuiyan said the arrest had renewed the need to recover the case documents.

“The matter has been revived through the arrest of a fugitive accused. In this situation, we feel it is necessary to locate the case documents.”

He said requests had already been made to the record-keeping department, Kotwali Police Station and the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s office to trace the files.

Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said Mozaffar Hossain would likely face trial under a General Court Martial, noting that military law applied because the other accused in the case had also been tried under the Armed Forces’ legal framework.

He said an individual could not be tried separately under two different legal systems for the same offence.

Separately, the ICT-2, headed by Justice Nazrul Islam Chowdhury, has directed that Mozaffar Hossain be produced before the tribunal next Thursday in connection with the crimes against humanity case.

Investigators said the breakthrough came during a technology-assisted investigation conducted by the ICT while probing crimes committed during the July 2024 mass uprising.

While examining the mobile phone of retired Lieutenant General Masud Uddin Chowdhury, investigators discovered a suspicious number that had repeatedly exchanged calls and text messages with him.

ICT Prosecutor Tanveer Zoha said investigators were initially searching for Masud Uddin Chowdhury’s personal secretary, but intelligence analysis later confirmed that the number belonged to Mozaffar Hossain, enabling law enforcement to trace and arrest him.

According to investigators, Mozaffar remained a fugitive by severing ties with his relatives, friends and former colleagues, frequently changing his appearance and living under assumed identities.

Following the assassination, the authorities announced a Tk 200,000 reward for information leading to his capture.

He reportedly fled to India under a false identity before secretly returning to Bangladesh around 1997-98, where he lived quietly and avoided public life.

Security analyst and former adviser Brig Gen (retd) Dr M Sakhawat Hossain said the arrest was consistent with military law.

“The army had already declared him a fugitive. Wherever he is found, he must be arrested—that is the law. Law enforcement has upheld that law.”

He added that joint interrogation could help uncover further details about the assassination and identify others who may have been involved.

Authorities said Mozaffar is now being questioned by a specialised military unit over his alleged role in the assassination, the network that sheltered him during his decades in hiding and other aspects of the failed coup.

The assassination took place in the early hours of 30 May 1981, when a group of army officers stormed the Chattogram Circuit House, where President Ziaur Rahman was staying during a visit aimed at resolving internal disputes within the BNP.

Ziaur Rahman, along with Colonel Ehsan and Captain Hafiz, was killed in the attack.

Historical accounts indicate that attempts were later made to secretly remove and bury the President’s body near Rangunia in Chattogram.

After government forces regained control of the city on 1 June 1981, the grave was discovered, the body was recovered and flown to Dhaka, where Ziaur Rahman was laid to rest with full state honours.

Following the failed coup, military tribunals tried 18 army officers, sentencing 13 to death and imprisoning five others, while another 20 officers were dismissed from service.

With the arrest of Mozaffar Hossain after nearly 45 years, authorities say there are no longer any convicted fugitives remaining in the Ziaur Rahman assassination case.

Investigators believe information emerging from his interrogation could shed fresh light on one of the darkest and most consequential chapters in Bangladesh’s political history.