Decades-Long Hunt Ends: Arrest in Former President’s 1981 Assassination
After evading capture for 45 years, Major (retired) Md Mozaffar Hossain has been arrested in connection with the assassination of Bangladesh’s former President, Ziaur Rahman. The arrest brings a significant development to a high-profile case that has remained a part of the nation’s history for decades.
Authorities from the Detective Branch of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police apprehended Mozaffar Hossain in the DOHS area of Dhaka late on Wednesday night. Police officials confirmed that the former military officer had been on the run since the 1981 incident.
Following his arrest and the completion of necessary legal steps, Mozaffar Hossain was handed over to the Bangladesh Army. He is expected to face court-martial proceedings, marking a new chapter in the investigation into the former president’s death.
Ziaur Rahman, who served as President of Bangladesh and founded the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), was assassinated on May 30, 1981. The incident occurred in the early hours at the Chattogram Circuit House.
Reports from the time indicate that a group of rogue army officers carried out the assassination. President Rahman had traveled to Chattogram the day before to address internal disagreements within his political party, the BNP. His sudden death sent shockwaves across the country and reshaped Bangladesh’s political landscape.
This arrest, coming more than four decades after the event, underscores the ongoing efforts by law enforcement to resolve long-standing cases. It signals a potential breakthrough in understanding the full scope of the conspiracy surrounding the assassination of a prominent national leader. The court-martial proceedings are anticipated to shed more light on the circumstances of that fateful night in 1981.
