Three decades have passed since the death of popular Dhaka film star Salman Shah, but the mystery of his death has not been solved.
Although the death was ruled a suicide in four stages of investigation, his family did not accept it. After a new murder case was filed, the family is continuing its legal battle in the hope of getting justice again.
Salman Shah’s body was recovered from his home in Eskaton, Dhaka, on September 6, 1996. After his death, a case of unnatural death was initially filed, but later, a request was made to convert the case to a murder case, alleging that he was murdered.
After a long investigation, the CID, the judicial investigation and later the PBI found no evidence to support the murder charge. The final report issued by the PBI in 2020 also said that no evidence of murder was found in the statements of witnesses and the review of seized evidence. Then in 2021, the court ordered the acquittal of the accused.
However, Salman Shah’s family was not satisfied with the decision. His mother Neela Chowdhury objected to the investigation report and demanded a new investigation, alleging murder behind her son’s death.
In October 2025, Dhaka’s Sixth Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge Jannatul Ferdous Ibn Haque granted the revision petition filed by the family. A murder case was ordered to be filed, attaching the complaint of Salman Shah’s father Qamaruddin Ahmed and the statement of Rizvi Ahmed alias Farhad, who was involved in the incident. At the same time, an investigation into the complaint was ordered.
Actor Mohammad Ashraful Haque Don has already been arrested in the new case. He was sent to jail after being arrested from the airport. Salman Shah’s mother Neela Chowdhury has raised questions about the non-arrest of the other accused in the case.
“I hope the investigation into the case will be completed and the trial will take place,” he said from London.
Neela Chowdhury claims that the other accused are also in the country and if they are arrested and interrogated, the mystery of the death may be revealed. According to her, if the accused are interrogated on remand, all the secrets of the murder will be revealed.
Alamgir Kumkum, the maternal uncle of the plaintiff in the case, Salman Shah, also demanded the immediate arrest of the accused and completion of the trial. According to him, not only his family but also the people of the country want justice in Salman Shah’s death.
However, the investigation agency is still investigating the new case. Investigation officer CID Dhaka Metro South Inspector Mojibur Rahman said that one accused has been arrested and a drive is underway to arrest others.
Three decades of legal battles
After Salman Shah’s death, the CID submitted a final report to the court on November 3, 1997, stating that he had committed suicide. When the family rejected the report, the case was sent to a judicial inquiry in 2003. The investigation report submitted in 2014 also dismissed the murder charge.
Then, Neela Chowdhury objected to the judicial investigation report in 2015. After her complaint, the case was taken up for investigation by RAB, but in 2016, RAB withdrew from the investigation on a court order. Later, the PBI was given the responsibility of the investigation.
After four years of investigation, the PBI said in 2020 that it had found no evidence to support the charges of murdering Salman Shah. The report cited various aspects of his personal and family life as possible reasons for his suicide.
But the matter did not end there due to objections from the family. The legal process continued even after the acquittal of the accused in 2021. Finally, in 2025, the revision petition was granted, paving the way for a new investigation into the murder case.
Thirty years after Salman Shah’s death, a new investigation is now determining the answer to the much-discussed question – was it suicide or murder?
The final answer to this question will not be available until the investigation into the case is completed.