Police have arrested two people in Barisal for allegedly beating the managing director (MD) of a housing company and forcing him to sign checks and stamps.
The incident took place at the office of Agrani Housing Limited located in the city’s Sadar Road area last Thursday. After the case was registered as an FIR on the court’s orders, Mostafizur Rahman Litu and Abul Kalam Azad were arrested from the city’s Top Ten area on Sunday afternoon.
The victim, Abdul Aziz Howlader, alleged that the accused beat and intimidated him and forced him to sign a check worth Tk 7 million and six non-judicial stamps.
Although Litu was locally claimed to be associated with the Jubo Dal, the Barisal Metropolitan Jubo Dal denied it. The organization’s general secretary, Masud Hasan Mamun, said that Litu never held any position in the Jubo Dal.
On the other hand, Litu’s brother and president of the Barisal Metropolitan Volunteer Party, Mahbubur Rahman Pintu, claimed that the incident did not actually happen the way it is being publicized.
Assistant Commissioner of Barisal Metropolitan Police Belal Hossain said that the complaint has been registered as a case on the court’s orders and two accused have been arrested in the incident. A drive is underway to arrest the other accused.
Seven people, including Litu, have been named in the case. In addition, 10 to 15 other unidentified people have been named as accused.
The victim claims that Litu was previously a business partner of their housing company. All financial transactions were settled through land transfer in 2023 and a written declaration was also made in this regard. Even then, Litu had been demanding Tk 1 crore from him for the past few months. He alleged that he was victimized by this incident because the demand was rejected.
Abdul Aziz also said that the accused were unable to cash the check because he informed the bank concerned immediately after the incident.
A CCTV footage circulating on social media on Saturday showed a group of men entering the office, physically assaulting Abdul Aziz and forcing him to sign checks and stamps by placing them in front of him. The incident has sparked widespread discussion in the area.