Kolkata: The murder mystery surrounding Bangladesh MP Anwarul Azim Anar, 56, who came to Kolkata for medical treatment earlier this month, has deepened. His body has yet to be found, though three arrests have been made in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh’s home minister, Asaduzzaman Khan, announced at a press conference in Dhaka on Wednesday that Anar was murdered in Kolkata. “Azim was murdered in a planned manner in a house in Kolkata. Police forces of both India and Bangladesh are working together to uncover the motive and identify the culprits, following all international protocols,” Khan stated, adding that “people from our country are involved in the killing.” Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina expressed shock at Anar’s death and offered condolences to his family.
Anar, a three-time Awami League MP representing Jhenaidah-4 in Khulna division, arrived in Kolkata on May 12 and stayed with long-term associate Gopal Biswas in Sinthi, north Kolkata. According to Biswas, Anar left the next day for a medical check-up but did not return. Over the next two days, Biswas and Anar’s daughter in Bangladesh received text messages from Anar, claiming he was in Delhi on work. When they failed to contact him within 48 hours, Biswas filed a missing person’s report at Baranagar police station on May 18. The Barrackpore Police Commissionerate formed a special investigation team to trace the politician. On May 20, an external affairs ministry input indicated that Anar had possibly been murdered.
On Wednesday, Bidhannagar Police revealed that Anar was murdered in an upscale gated community with duplex flats near Aquatica in New Town. The flat is owned by state excise department employee Sanjib Ghosh, who had rented it to Akhtaruzzaman, a US national.
A team of officials from Bidhannagar and Barrackpore Police Commissionerates, the STF, and central agencies searched the New Town flat on Wednesday morning. They found blood stains but no body. CCTV footage showed Anar entering the housing complex with two men and a woman on May 13, but he was not seen exiting. The two men and the woman were seen leaving at different times between May 13 and 15, with two of them carrying large bags. Akhilesh Chaturvedi, IG of state CID, confirmed that the MP’s body has not been recovered.
Biswas reported in the missing diary that Anar sent a message on May 13 claiming he was traveling to Delhi. On May 15, he texted saying he had reached Delhi and was with VIPs, making him unable to speak. According to Biswas, Anar’s daughter Mumtarim Firdaus Dorin and personal assistant also received similar messages.
“There was a call from the MP’s phone to his PA on May 16. His PA could not take the call at that moment, but when he called back, the MP’s phone was unavailable. Anar’s daughter, concerned about her father’s disappearance, called me on May 17. The next day, I filed the missing complaint,” Biswas said.
Bangladeshi newspaper ‘Daily Star’ quoted the country’s home minister as saying they were looking for a few more individuals involved in the murder.
