Hafez Abdul Alim Sheikh did everything right. He sat for the recruitment examination, secured a top position, and received an official letter of appointment.
Yet, the candidate from Jaldhaka area of Nilphamari finds himself without the job he earned, entangled in a web of alleged bribery demands, secret audio recordings, and contradictory administrative decisions.
The ordeal began on 15 March 2024, when Alim appeared for the recruitment examination held at the Nilphamari Deputy Commissioner’s (DC) Office for the post of caretaker under the Mosque-Based Child and Mass Education Programme.
Having passed the test, he was issued an appointment letter on 17 April 2024 to join as a caretaker at the Jaldhaka general resource centre.
However, when he arrived at the district office on 22 April 2024 to formally take up his duties, Nilphamari Islamic Foundation Deputy Director Mosaddekul Alam suspended his joining, raising sudden objections regarding Alim’s educational certificate and permanent address.
To verify the claims, three separate investigations were launched.
Probe reports were subsequently submitted on 1 and 2 October 2024 by the Nilphamari District Superintendent of Police Office, the District Special Branch (DSB), and an Islamic Foundation committee headed by Assistant Director Mashiur Rahman.
According to Alim, all three investigation reports found no truth to the allegations that his address or educational certificate had been forged.
Audio evidence, demands for bribes
Despite clearing every official inquiry, Alim was still barred from joining his post. Instead, he alleged that a bribe of Tk3 lakh was demanded from him to process his joining. According to Alim, he was explicitly told that the money needed to be paid to the “DC Office and Head Office.”
In an audio recording of a phone conversation provided by Alim, he is heard pleading with Deputy Director Mosaddekul Alam to allow him to join, offering to pay Tk30,000 immediately by selling his goat and another Tk20,000 later.
In response, the voice identified as Mosaddekul Alam states, “This money has to be given to the DC office and head office,” before adding, “This Tk30,000 will accomplish nothing; more money needs to be paid.”
In hopes of securing the employment he had legitimately earned, Alim claimed he managed to pay Tk1 lakh across two installments. However, because he could not raise the remaining amount, his joining remained blocked.
Alim further alleged that once the matter began to leak, pressure was put on him in secret to pay the rest of the sum, accompanied by threats that his recruitment would be cancelled if he failed to comply.
High court intervention, final revocation
Seeking redress, Alim filed a writ petition with the High Court, which ordered relevant authorities to resolve the matter within 60 days.
However, nearly 11 months later, on 4 November 2025, his appointment was officially cancelled through a memorandum signed by Project Director SM Tariqul Islam.
The memorandum cited the exact same ground – alleged submission of a forged certificate – that three independent inquiries had previously cleared, leaving Alim to question why his appointment was revoked on discredited pretexts.
When questioned about the bribery allegations, Deputy Director Mosaddekul Alam denied demanding money. While acknowledging that he had received Tk 28,000 from Alim when preparing for Hajj last year, Mosaddekul claimed the candidate had forced the money upon him.
He maintained that the decision to cancel the appointment was taken by higher authorities and that he bore no responsibility, though he offered no explanation regarding the recorded statements demanding funds for the DC Office and Head Office.
Independent proof of the financial transaction or a direct confession of taking a bribe has not been established against Mosaddekul.
Institutional responses and broader misconduct
Beyond the recruitment controversy, Mosaddekul faces additional allegations of administrative misconduct.
He is accused of illegally occupying a guest room at the District Model Mosque and Islamic Foundation office for an extended period while drawing an official house rent allowance, utilising government electricity to run an air conditioner, refrigerator, and electric stove.
He is also alleged to have performed Hajj multiple times at state expense. Responding to the room occupancy claim, Mosaddekul stated that he merely stays in the guest room occasionally.
Reactions from higher authorities have yielded little clarity.
Towhidul Anwar, the Rangpur divisional director of Islamic Foundation, said there is no scope for taking money from job candidates and promised that action would be taken if formal complaints were received, referring inquiries to Project Director SM Tariqul Islam.
However, repeated mobile phone calls to Tariqul went unanswered. Similarly, when approached for comment, Nilphamari Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Nairuzzaman declined to make any statement.
With three investigative clearances ignored, a High Court directive remaining unresolved for months, and an appointment eventually revoked on discredited grounds, the recruitment process in Nilphamari leaves serious questions unanswered while the candidate awaits official inquiry and justice.
