An ostensibly local clash in Shantiganj, Sunamganj, has laid bare a toxic fracture within the ruling BNP.
A TIMES of Bangladesh investigation reveals that the turmoil stems from the controversial rehabilitation of Awami League figures and the harassment of grassroots activists by entrenched local power brokers.
The flashpoint came on 3 August at Basiakhawri village, where Awami League supporters allegedly ambushed BNP activists, leaving up to 20 people injured, 10 of them critically.
The victims backed incumbent BNP lawmaker Koysor M Ahmed, while the alleged assailants reportedly rallied for defeated independent candidate Anwar Hossain during the recent parliamentary election.
What followed exposed allegations of deep collusion between compromised local officials and partisan operators.
Mohiduzzaman, a local resident, filed a complaint naming Asfak Ahmad Sujan, nephew of Sunamganj district Awami League Vice-President Rais Uddin, as the prime suspect, along with 33 others.
However, the complainants allege that Shantiganj Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Waliullah deliberately stalled the process. Mohiduzzaman alleged that the OC pressured him into removing references to the political roots of the dispute before registering the case three days later, on 6 August.
During this period, the OC allegedly allowed a retaliatory counter-case to proceed.
By Saturday morning, a counter-case had been formally registered, naming several victims of the initial assault as suspects. Locals said the original attackers had continued to move freely without police interference.
Victims and local leaders have pointed the finger at Faruk Ahmed, a member of the Shantiganj upazila BNP convening committee and a former chairman.
Faruk has a history of close ties with former Awami League planning minister MA Mannan, having defied party lines to contest and win the 2018 upazila election, allegedly with Mannan’s backing.
Defending his department, OC Waliullah dismissed allegations of corruption or deliberate delay, saying the three-day gap was merely “procedural time” used to remove “unnecessary statements”.
He justified the counter-case by saying that members of the rival group had also sustained injuries, adding that “some of them even had their teeth broken”.
Meanwhile, Sunamganj Superintendent of Police ABM Zakir Hossain confirmed that he was monitoring the unrest from Dhaka and had directed the circle assistant superintendent of police to conduct a thorough investigation and take appropriate action.
As the dust settles, the incident has emerged as an alarming bellwether: while political regimes may change at the top, entrenched patronage networks on the ground threaten to corrode the party from within.
Faruk’s AL links under scrutiny
The counter-case has reignited intense scrutiny of Faruk Ahmed’s political allegiances and his longstanding ties with Awami League figures in Shantiganj.
TIMES found that local BNP leaders view Faruk as the primary patron shielding Sujan, the prime suspect, and his co-accused following the Basiakhawri attack.
Faruk’s history of defying party lines runs deep. When the BNP boycotted the 2018 upazila election, he contested anyway, defeating upazila Awami League President Abul Kalam to secure the chairmanship.
Local insiders alleged that former Awami League planning minister MA Mannan orchestrated his victory, leading to Faruk’s immediate expulsion from the BNP.
Faruk’s links with the then ruling establishment allegedly deepened further. In the 2024 upazila polls, he spearheaded the campaign for Mannan’s son, Sadat Mannan Abhi.
Photos and footage obtained by TIMES showed Faruk attending 15 August state events during Awami League rule. At one campaign rally, Faruk publicly lavished praise on Mannan’s record, saying, “I have visited Gopalganj, I have visited Tungipara, but I have not seen so many institutions established in any upazila. In the coming days, his worthy successor will make this upazila even more beautiful and developed.”
Senior Shantiganj BNP figures claim Faruk continued to shelter Awami League loyalists even after the regime fell on 5 August 2024, calculating that maintaining these networks would prove useful in the next upazila chairman election.
Although he was reinstated in the BNP ahead of the latest parliamentary polls, Faruk is reportedly preparing to contest the upazila election as an independent if the party denies him the nomination over his past betrayal.
Grassroots leaders insist that this electoral opportunism explains his alleged protection of the Basiakhawri attackers.
Shantiganj upazila BNP Joint Convener Akaruzzaman Babul did not mince his words, “During the party’s difficult days, Faruk was Awami League minister Mannan’s man. Even now, he is trying to protect the Awami League. This is nothing short of betrayal.”
Upazila BNP Convener Jalal Uddin echoed the frustration, saying, “Faruk contested in defiance of the party. Now he is back. What more can I say?”
Faruk did not respond to repeated calls and text messages seeking comment.
