Police have arrested three leaders and activists affiliated with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its associate bodies in connection with an attempt to smuggle chemical fertilizer to Myanmar via maritime routes off the Mirsarai coast in Chattogram. Officers from Jorarganj Police Station conducted targeted raids across various parts of the upazila on Sunday night, 8 November, apprehending the suspects following technological investigation into a previously registered smuggling case.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Mohsin Samrat (57), former joint convener of Osmanpur Union BNP; Fabyatul Farabi (24), former vice-president of Osmanpur Union Chhatra Dal; and Azahar Uddin (22), an active member of the union’s Chhatra Dal unit. All three reside in Osmanpur Union and are known active figures in local party politics. Investigators confirmed that preliminary evidence indicates their direct involvement in the contraband trade. Law enforcement personnel also uncovered preliminary links pointing to Shawkat Akbar, joint secretary of Chattogram North District Jubo Dal. Police launched an early-morning raid on Monday to arrest Akbar at his office in Katachhara Union, but he managed to evade capture and remains absconding.
The arrests stem from a major law enforcement interception on the night of 31 September at the Muhuri Project area in Osmanpur Union. Police seized two trucks containing 15,050 kilogrammes of chemical fertilizer as the consignment was being transferred onto fishing vessels for transport abroad. Three labourers detained at the scene were subjected to interrogation, during which mobile phone records revealed frequent communication between them and the three newly arrested BNP figures. Sub-Inspector Motiur Rahman subsequently filed a case at Jorarganj Police Station naming 15 individuals.
Police officials noted that a syndicate has been actively smuggling chemical fertilizer into Myanmar through secluded coastal stretches along Mirsarai over the past two months. On 24 September, Coast Guard personnel intercepted 42,000 kilogrammes of urea fertilizer, four trucks, and a fishing trawler near the Mirsarai National Special Economic Zone. In a separate operation on Friday night, police impounded a truck laden with 15,000 kilogrammes of fertilizer and detained its driver on the Mirsarai coast. Law enforcement agencies believe the same smuggling ring operates behind all these incidents.
Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Jorarganj Police Station Md Abdul Halim confirmed that the three suspects were produced before a court on Monday afternoon following extensive digital tracking and interrogation. He added that police drives are under way to apprehend the remaining syndicate members. Commenting on the developments, Mirsarai Member of Parliament and Chattogram North District BNP Joint Convener Nurul Amin declared that criminals hold no political identity. Describing fertilizer smuggling to a neighbouring nation during a domestic crisis as an act against national interests, he pledged full cooperation from the party to assist law enforcement officers in bringing the perpetrators to justice.
