Sarkar, the organisational secretary of the Sylhet district unit of the Awami League, claims that he returned to Bangladesh through India’s Meghalaya border and held a meeting with party activists in his former constituency on Sunday evening. However, several local sources have suggested that he may have returned to India after recording the video. Police have yet to establish where the meeting took place.
The former MP has insisted that the gathering was held inside Bangladesh, specifically in his electoral constituency, Sunamganj-1, which comprises Jamalganj, Dharmapasha, Tahirpur and Madhyanagar.
On Monday, 9 November, at 4.49pm, Sarkar uploaded a video lasting five minutes and 33 seconds to his personal Facebook account, ‘Ranjit Sarker MP’. It quickly circulated across social media platforms, drawing attention to his apparent return to public political activity after remaining out of sight since the political upheaval of 5 August 2024.
According to sources within the Awami League, Sarkar had spent some time in the United Kingdom before travelling to India approximately a month ago. His movements since then have remained unclear.
The video shows Sarkar addressing a gathering of party activists. A banner behind him reads: ‘Sheikh Hasina will return, Bangladesh will smile’, announcing an exchange meeting to mark the anticipated return of Sheikh Hasina. Sarkar is identified as the guest speaker, while the organisers are named as the Awami League and its affiliated organisations in Tahirpur, Jamalganj, Dharmapasha and Madhyanagar.
During his speech, Sarkar alleged that Awami League activists were facing persecution and arrests under the prevailing political circumstances. Referring to an anticipated return of Sheikh Hasina to Bangladesh in December, he urged party members to prepare for future political activities.
He also called on activists to remain involved in organisational programmes and be prepared to make the greatest sacrifices for the party.
One person detained after appearing in the video
Among those seen holding the banner behind Sarkar were Omar Faruk, a leader of the Jamalganj upazila unit of Chhatra League, and Tara Mia, organisational secretary of the Tahirpur upazila Awami League.
On Tuesday morning, police detained Tara Mia from the Saheb Bari Ghat area of Sunamganj town. He was subsequently taken to Sunamganj Sadar Model Police Station for questioning.
Police are seeking to establish the location of the gathering and determine how the participants were assembled. Investigators hope that questioning those who attended the meeting will provide further clues about where the video was recorded.
The video had also been preceded by a series of social media posts on Monday morning. Several Chhatra League leaders tagged Sarkar in their posts, suggesting that something significant was about to happen. The timing of those posts has fuelled speculation that the video release may have been planned in advance.
Drums, musical instruments and flower pots fuel speculation
The setting of the meeting has become another focus of discussion.
In one section of the footage, Sarkar is seen entering a room where approximately 50 people are seated. Drums and tablas are placed at the front, while two individuals hold the banner as he delivers his speech. Several expensive-looking flower pots can also be seen beside the venue.
These details have prompted different interpretations on social media. Some users believe the gathering may have taken place in an area near the Indian border, possibly in Meghalaya. A section of social media users has speculated that a Shyama Puja celebration was taking place at the venue and that Sarkar arrived wearing a face mask, delivered his speech and left after the recording.
Others believe that a cultural programme had been arranged before his arrival to bring people together. According to this interpretation, music was being performed with drums and tablas before Sarkar appeared to address the gathering.
Several Bluetooth microphones can also be seen attached to his clothing.
Some have suggested that the venue could equally have been somewhere inside Bangladesh, close to the border. However, none of these theories has been independently verified, and the instruments or decorations visible in the footage do not establish the location.
Rallies in Sylhet as fire breaks out at Sarkar’s house
The video’s release was followed by political activity in Sylhet. On Monday night, Awami League, Chhatra League and Jubo League activists staged processions and torch processions at several locations across the city.
The developments coincided with another incident involving Sarkar’s family home. The house was reportedly set on fire again on Monday night.
It had previously been vandalised and set ablaze on 5 August 2024, following the change in the country’s political circumstances.
The latest incident has added another dimension to the controversy surrounding the former MP. Details about those responsible for the fire and the circumstances surrounding the incident were not immediately available.
Conflicting accounts of his movements between India and the UK
Questions about Sarkar’s whereabouts have persisted since the political upheaval of July and August 2024.
Several local sources claim that he went into hiding following the July uprising and spent an extended period in India. He later travelled to the United Kingdom on a visit visa.
According to sources familiar with the matter, he sought legal protection in the UK, reportedly citing persecution in Bangladesh on political and ethnic minority grounds. The sources claim that his application was rejected and that he subsequently returned to India. These details have not been independently confirmed.
An Awami League source said Sarkar travelled to India from the UK approximately a month ago. During his stay in India, party activists reportedly circulated messages about his political plans.
Sarkar himself had previously indicated that he was returning to India with the intention of bringing Sheikh Hasina back to Bangladesh. He had also suggested that he would return to the country when circumstances allowed.
Several local sources now claim that he may have entered Bangladesh in recent days, travelled to a location near the border within his former constituency, recorded the meeting and subsequently returned to India.
They suggest that certain villages in the constituency are sufficiently remote for such a gathering to take place without attracting immediate public attention.
However, there is no confirmed information establishing either his return to Bangladesh or his alleged departure for India after the meeting.
Previous allegations surrounding his political influence
The latest controversy has also revived discussion about Sarkar’s political influence and past activities in Sylhet’s Tilagarh area.
Local residents have previously accused him of building a powerful political network in the area and using his influence to dominate local affairs. Allegations have also been made linking his associates to violence and various criminal incidents.
Several of his followers came under scrutiny in connection with the gang rape of a housewife at the student accommodation of the historic Murari Chand (MC) College in Sylhet. The victim was reportedly held against her will at the hostel before being assaulted.
His associates were also accused of involvement in a fire at the college’s old student hostel. Another allegation against Sarkar concerns the assault of a livestock officer and the forcible seizure of a sacrificial goat.
His name has also been linked in allegations surrounding several murders in the college campus and other parts of the area. These are allegations and should be distinguished from findings established through judicial proceedings.
Sarkar was elected MP from Sunamganj-1 in the 2024 12th parliamentary election, representing the Awami League with its boat symbol. Although his home district is Sunamganj, his longstanding political activities in Sylhet helped him secure the position of organisational secretary of the Sylhet district Awami League.
Sarkar insists the meeting took place inside Bangladesh
Responding to questions from local journalists through WhatsApp, Sarkar strongly rejected suggestions that the meeting had taken place in India.
He argued that it would make little sense for him to take people from Tahirpur in Bangladesh across the border into India to organise such a gathering.
‘Listen carefully to my speech. I said every inch of our land belongs to us. That means I held the meeting somewhere inside Bangladesh. I organised the programme in my own constituency, and 100 per cent of those present were people from that area. Not a single person from Sylhet city was there,’ he said.
He also referred to the restrictions on his party’s activities and indicated that the gathering was only an initial signal of further political activity.
‘We are facing restrictions. We will organise programmes wherever we get the opportunity. This is not the end. It was just an advance indication,’ he said.
Explaining the presence of drums and tablas, Sarkar said musical instruments were a regular part of Awami League programmes and reflected Bengali cultural traditions.
‘Awami League programmes have drums and tablas. We are culturally minded people. We sing cultural songs and celebrate. Drums and tablas are part of Bengali heritage. They are not used only during religious festivals,’ he said.
He reiterated his commitment to bringing Sheikh Hasina back to Bangladesh, saying that party activists would be prepared to risk their lives for that objective.
Addressing questions about his whereabouts, he made a direct challenge to law enforcement agencies.
‘I am still in Bangladesh. This is the digital age. Let us see if the police can find me,’ he said.
Police offer differing assessments of the meeting’s location
Police in Sylhet and Sunamganj have offered different assessments of where the gathering may have taken place, leaving the central question unresolved.
Assistant Superintendent of Police SM Fazle Rabbi Rajib, who is responsible for the Dharmapasha circle in Sunamganj, said investigators had not yet established whether the video was recorded in Bangladesh or India.
He confirmed that one person seen holding the banner had been detained and was being questioned.
‘We cannot yet confirm whether Ranjit Sarkar recorded the video in Bangladesh or India. However, one of the people holding the banner in the footage has been detained for questioning. We may be able to establish the location after completing the interrogation,’ he said.
Sunamganj Superintendent of Police ABM Zakir Hossain offered a different assessment. He said the district’s border areas were under tight security and that Sarkar would not have been able to enter through the Sunamganj border.
According to him, the people from Sarkar’s constituency who appeared in the footage may have been taken to a location near the Sylhet border for the recording.
Rat an Sheikh, officer-in-charge of Sunamganj Sadar Model Police Station, said the location remained unconfirmed.
He added that one person had been detained and questioned, and that further details would be disclosed once investigators had gathered sufficient information.
Sylhet Superintendent of Police Dr Chowdhury Md Jaber Sadeque, however, expressed a different view from his Sunamganj counterpart.
He said he did not believe the meeting had taken place along the Sylhet border. Instead, he suspected that it had been organised at a location near the Sunamganj border.
He also said that those present in the footage appeared to be residents of Sunamganj, adding that the matter was still being examined.
The conflicting statements from the two districts’ police officials have further complicated efforts to establish the precise location of the gathering.
For now, Sarkar’s whereabouts remain uncertain. While the former MP insists that he is inside Bangladesh and has openly challenged police to locate him, local accounts and official assessments have yet to establish whether he crossed the border, where the meeting was held or what happened after the recording. The questioning of the detained individual and the ongoing police inquiry may provide answers to those questions.
