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Thursday | October 08, 2026 | Dhaka

Durga Puja ‘acid test’ for govt: DMP boss

 Staff Reporter
 Published: 12:01 AM, 08 October 2026

Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Mosleh Uddin Ahmed has said that this is the first time Durga Puja, the biggest religious festival of the Hindu community, is being held under the present government, and that it is therefore an “acid test” for them.

He said the DMP will remain on maximum alert so that the festival can be celebrated peacefully at every puja mandap in the Dhaka metropolitan area.

He made the remarks in his presidential speech at a meeting on security,
law and order and traffic management for the coming Durga Puja, held on Tuesday in the conference room at DMP headquarters.

Meanwhile, BNP acting secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi has said that “allies of fascism” are still lying low in the administration and elsewhere in the country. He said they are hatching various conspiracies to cause trouble for the elected government and destabilise the country.

He was speaking on Wednesday at the Bangladesh Medical University premises, before distributing dengue awareness leaflets.

He also questioned how a top gangster could escape from a police van.
The commissioner said overall security arrangements have been made for Mahalaya, for the Durga Puja period and for the immersion of the idols.

Every puja mandap will be covered by CCTV, and the person in charge of each mandap will carry a body-worn camera. As well as uniformed and plainclothes police, SWAT, Crisis Response Team, Quick Response Team, crime scene van and bomb disposal units will be on standby round the clock during the puja.

Addressing leaders of the Puja Udjapan Parishad, the commissioner said they must ensure the security of their own mandaps. They must keep watch on puja committee members, volunteers and visitors alike. In an emergency, he asked them to contact the national emergency service on 999 or the local police station.

At the meeting, Joint Commissioner (Operations) Md Shahidullah gave a PowerPoint presentation setting out the DMP’s security, law and order and traffic management plans for the puja.

Also present were:Additional Commissioner (Protection and Diplomatic Security) Abul Bashar Talukder. Additional Commissioner (Detective) Shafiqul Islam. Additional Commissioner (Logistics, Finance and Procurement) Masud Karim.

Additional Commissioner (Special Response Unit) Md Shamsul Haque. Additional Commissioner (Estate, Development and ICT). Additional Commissioner (Crime and Operations), in charge, Md Osman Gani. leaders of the puja celebration committee