A probe committee has found no irregularities in the professional identity of Kabir Hossain, who received a farmer card from Prime Minister Tarique Rahman in Tangail.
The committee also said that images circulating on social media showing him holding an iPhone or standing in front of a luxury car were created using artificial intelligence.
In its report submitted on Wednesday night, the five-member committee formed by the Tangail district administration stated that, under the Farmer Smart Card Policy 2025, Kabir Hossain qualifies as a marginal farmer and is therefore eligible for the card.
Deputy Commissioner Sharifa Haque has also informed the secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture in writing. On the same day, senior officials, including the director general of the Department of Agricultural Extension, visited Kabir’s home in Uttar Tartia village under Gharinda Union of Tangail Sadar to assess his condition.
On Tuesday afternoon, the Prime Minister inaugurated the distribution of “Farmer Cards” as a pre-piloting initiative aimed at improving the livelihoods of landless, marginal, and small farmers at Shaheed Maruf Stadium in Tangail. Fifteen people received the cards at the event, including Kabir.
Kabir said he earns his living through sharecropping. Soon after the event, multiple images of Kabir began circulating on social media. In some, he appears holding an iPhone; in others, he is seen standing in front of a car or at a resort.
This led to questions online about whether he was truly eligible for the farmer card, prompting the formation of the probe committee.
A visit to Kabir’s home on Thursday found that he lives in a tin-shed house. He grows vegetables in front of his home and raises cattle, ducks, and chickens in the backyard.
He owns around 13 decimals of land and has long cultivated additional land through sharecropping. He also worked abroad as a labourer for a few years before returning to farming.
After failing his SSC examination in 1992, he went abroad in search of work. Following an unsuccessful stint, he returned home and focused on agriculture. He now owns an irrigation machine, which he uses for his own and nearby fields.
Kabir has gained some local recognition through photos and videos shared on Facebook. His wife, Selina Akter, told TIMES of Bangladesh, “My husband is a genuine farmer.
He cultivates our small inherited land and also works on others’ land as a sharecropper. Alongside farming, he creates content on Facebook to earn some extra income. Some AI-generated photos he posted have led to misunderstandings.”
Kabir said, “There has been a deliberate attempt to conspire against me. I hold no political position. Some people are intentionally spreading false information and rumours about me.”
Additional Deputy Commissioner (General) Sanjay Kumar Mahanta said the probe report confirms that Kabir Hossain is eligible for the card as a marginal farmer under the Farmer Smart Card Policy 2025.
