Noakhali Correspondent 

An expatriate family in Noakhali has appealed to the Chief Adviser to save their family from terrorists, extortionists, eve-teasers and land grabbers. Allegations have been raised that a family from Sonaimuri in Noakhali is being harassed through false cases. 

On Saturday at a press conference organized at Euro Shopping Complex in the district town Maijdee, the victimized family made these allegations.

Shah Alam, a member of the victim family, said at the press conference that land grabbers, case abusers, eve-teasers, terrorists, and illegal occupiers Mahbubur Rashid Raju, Mahbubul Alam Dulal, Mahbubur Rashid Raju’s wife Rehana Parveen, housemaid Rahima Begum, and Momtaz gang have been torturing, threatening, and harassing them with false domestic abuse cases filed by hired women.

He further stated that his daughter, Samiyan Alam Mili, is a top student in class eight at Sonapur Ali Akbar High School. Due to threats from the eve-teasers, her mother Umme Romana cannot take her to school. Their entire family is devastated by attempts to evict them from their homestead. The three brothers of the family—one lives in America and the other two have been living in Chattogram for the past 20 years. They have 401 shatak (approx. 5.5 acres) of ancestral land in Dhannopur village. In their absence, Mahbubur Rashid and his teenage gang forcibly enjoyed the produce and fish from the property.

On December 18, 2023, Shah Alam returned home with his wife and daughter from Chattogram and started living there. Mahbubur Rashid and his group, upset at their return, began creating conflict over trivial matters. Shah Alam said the group, unable to extract benefits from the property anymore, began plotting to evict them. Consequently, Mahbubur Rashid’s group attacked Shah Alam and his wife multiple times and issued various threats. Shah Alam filed a general diary (GD) at Sonaimuri police station, and the investigating officer found the allegations true and submitted a report to the court.

The group has also been occupying 17 decimals of land for a long time. When asked about the illegal occupation, they became more aggressive. They even took Shah Alam’s family hostage in their home with goons, claiming lent money as debt repayment. Later, using influence, they filed a complaint to the Chairman of Sonapur Union Parishad claiming they had given money to Shah Alam for purchasing the land. Acting Chairman Abdul Hannan was allegedly pressured to produce a written verdict obligating Shah Alam to return the money, after which the threats intensified. Shah Alam was then harassed with three cases, including a false woman abuse case.

When asked, Mahbubur Rashid denied the allegations, saying, “I have no current conflict with Shah Alam. I haven’t filed any case against him.”

Sonaimuri Police Station OC Morshed Alam told Manab Zamin: “Both parties have filed counter-cases. Police have tried to mediate the matter, but neither party listens.”