Wikipedia

Harris Chowdhury

Abul Harris Chowdhury (1 November 1952 – 3 September 2021) was a Bangladeshi and politician who served as the Political Secretary of Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia. He was the Joint Secretary General of Bangladesh Nationalist Party.[1][2][3] Chowdhury was sentenced to 65 years in total and a life term in prison in absentia for allegedly committing multiple crimes.[4] His party alleges the charges were falsely given, along with those against Khaleda Zia's son Tarique Rahman,[5] and many other senior party members.[6]

Md Abul Harris Chowdhury
মোঃ আবুল হারিছ চৌধুরী
Born
Md Abul Harris Chowdhury

(1952-11-01)1 November 1952
Died3 September 2021(2021-09-03) (aged 68)
Dhaka, Bangladesh
NationalityBangladeshi
Occupation
  • Politician
Political partyBangladesh Nationalist Party

Career

edit

Chowdhury was nominated to contest in National Parliamentary Election since 1977. He was Founder General Secretary and Divisional Organizing Secretary of Sylhet District unit BNP and Joint Secretary General of BNP's Central Committee. President Ziaur Rahman gave him the responsibility of organizing the youth- he was the Founder Vice President of BNP's youth wing. He served as Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia's political secretary. He worked closely and for a long time with two state and government heads i.e. President Ziaur Rahman and Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia.[7] He served as the political secretary of the then Prime Minister Khaleda Zia from 2001 to 2006.[8]

Charges and convictions

edit

Chowdhury had been a fugitive since the military-backed interim caretaker government took power on 11 January 2007. Later that year, Chowdhury was charged by the caretaker government of acquiring his wealth through corruption.[9][10] In October, he was sentenced to three years in jail by a special anti-corruption tribunal for illegally possessing foreign currency.[11][12] In November, a Dhaka court sentenced him to 59 years in jail and fined him Tk 21 lakh on five counts of charges, including abuse of power and government-transport mishandling.[13]

He was charged with involvement in the murder of former finance minister, Shah A M S Kibria, in 2005.[14] In November 2014, a supplementary charge-sheet was submitted accusing 35 people including Chowdhury.[15] Chowdhury was also charged with Zia Charitable Trust corruption case.[15]

Chowdhury was charged with involvement in the 15 August 2004 Dhaka grenade attack.[15] In December 2014, an arrest warrant was issued against him.[16] In February 2016, his properties were confiscated by the directives of Bangladesh High Court.[17] In October 2018, a special court found Chowdhury and 37 others guilty in the grenade attack case. He was sentenced to life term in prison and fined Tk 50,000.[18] Interpol Red Notice had been served on him in November 2015.[19] According to CID and police headquarters sources, as of October 2018, Chowdhury was moving through Malaysia, London, Singapore, the United States and India.[19][dubious – discuss]

Chowdhury's family also refers to the allegations and charges against him along with the convictions he received to be simply political and part of the political culture of the country[7] An investigative report by veteran journalist Matiur Rahman Chowdhury published in Manab Zamin following Chowdhury's death confirms that he had in fact never fled the country.[20]

Personal life and death

edit

Chowdhury is married to Josne Ara Chowdhury.[9] They have a son, Nayem Shafi Chowdhury, and a daughter, Samira Tanzin Chowdhury.[20] He has a younger brother, Selim Chowdhury, and an elder sister, Akhlasun Nahar.[9]

On 12 January 2022, Chowdhury's cousin announced in a Facebook post that Chowdhury had died from COVID-19 complications in London, United Kingdom, in September 2021, and was buried at the same location [dubious – discuss].[21][22] While his cousin's announcement was widely reported, other controversial sources often criticised for spreading disinformation reported that Chowdhury had not died.[23][24] Nonetheless, drawing a conclusion to all politically motivated controversies surrounding the matter, His daughter Samira Tanzin Chowdhury revealed to the media and confirmed particularly in an investigative report by acclaimed journalist Matiur Rahman Chowdhury the Editor in Chief of the Manab Zamin that Harris Chowdhury in fact passed away in Evercare Hospital, Dhaka never having fled the country.[20]

References

edit
  1. ^ "Harris Chy among 9 charged with Kibria murder". The Daily Star. 13 November 2014. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  2. ^ Manik, Julfikar Ali; Khan, Sharier. "Harris Chowdhury". The Daily Star. Archived from the original on 4 February 2017. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  3. ^ "High Court rejects former prime minister Khaleda Zia's plea". dna. 7 April 2016. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  4. ^ "Where is Harris Chowdhury?". Bangla Tribune. 30 August 2017. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  5. ^ "Tarique Rahman, wife, victims of political vendetta: Fakhrul". Prothom Alo. November 2022. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
  6. ^ "Former finance minister Kibria murder: 17 years on, justice remains elusive". Dhaka Tribune. 27 January 2022. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
  7. ^ a b "Harris Chowdhury passes away, burial held in Dhaka". JustNewsBD.
  8. ^ "Sacked Sylhet mayor Ariful out of jail on bail". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  9. ^ a b c "Harris the fortune-maker". The Daily Star. 15 August 2008. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  10. ^ "Jail term for Khaleda Zia adviser". BBC News. 21 May 2007. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  11. ^ "Three more top Bangladeshis held". BBC News. 28 May 2007. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  12. ^ "Harris Chowdhury jailed for 3 years". bdnews24.com. 14 October 2007. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  13. ^ "Harris Chowdhury to spend 10 years behind bars". 4 November 2007. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  14. ^ "Deputy speaker blames failure to try policemen's killers for Liton murder, seeks security for MPs". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  15. ^ a b c "Khaleda's ex-political secretary Harris Chowdhury implicated in Kibria murder". Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  16. ^ "Arrest warrants for Harris Chowdhury, BNP mayors in Kibria murder". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  17. ^ "Court orders impounding of assets of 10 fugitives in explosives case over ex-minister Kibria murder". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  18. ^ "August 21 attack: 'State-backed crime' punished". The Daily Star. 11 October 2018. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  19. ^ a b "Cops locate Harris among 8 fugitives of Aug 21 grenade attack". The Daily Star. 9 October 2018. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  20. ^ a b c হারিছ চৌধুরী আত্মগোপনে ৩ বছর কোথায় ছিলেন, অনুসন্ধানে নতুন তথ্য. Manab Zamin (in Bengali). 4 May 2022.
  21. ^ হারিছ চৌধুরী যুক্তরাজ্যে মারা গেছেন, জানালেন চাচাতো ভাই. Prothom Alo (in Bengali). 12 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  22. ^ BNP leader Harris Chowdhury dies
  23. ^ "BNP leader Harris Chowdhury hides under death rumor". Weekly Blitz. 17 January 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  24. ^ পরিচয় গোপন করতেই হারিছ চৌধুরীর মৃত্যু নাটক. Bangla Insider (in Bengali). 13 January 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Harris_Chowdhury&oldid=1234270942"