DB Claims Hadi Murder Mastermind Bappi Is in Kolkata, India; Indian Authorities Deny Any Information

Bangladesh’s Dhaka Metropolitan Police Detective Branch (DB) has claimed that Mirpur’s former ward councillor and Jubo League leader Taijul Islam Chowdhury, widely known as Bappi, is currently hiding in Kolkata, India, after allegedly masterminding the killing of Inqilab Mancha leader Sharif Osman Hadi.

According to the DB, the murder was carried out under Bappi’s direct planning and instructions. Investigators say the shooting that killed Hadi was executed by hired gunmen, with the operation coordinated from abroad following the incident.

DB sources state that Bappi has been in hiding in Kolkata for more than a year. Investigations indicate that he has been staying in a four-storey building located in the Jhajhan Goli area of Methopara, West Beraberi, under Rajarhat in Kolkata. He is reportedly living in an A-3 flat on the first floor of the building, along with four to five other Awami League leaders and activists, all of whom are said to be facing multiple criminal cases in Bangladesh.

Local residents in the area claim that Bappi has been introducing himself as a Bangladeshi police official to conceal his identity. When journalists attempted to reach the flat, he allegedly went into hiding. Two individuals sharing the flat—Mofikur Rahman Ujjal and Sajibul Islam, both identified as Jubo League activists from Dhaka’s Sher-e-Bangla Police Station area—told reporters that Bappi was not present in the apartment at the time.

The DB further claims that, along with Bappi, the alleged shooter, Faisal Karim, and his associate Alamgir Hossain also fled to India following the murder.

Meanwhile, trusted sources within the Awami League have claimed that Bappi has already been detained by Indian police. However, when contacted, Narayanpur Police Station denied any such arrest. The Bidhannagar Police Commissioner’s office also stated that they have no information indicating that suspects in the Hadi murder are hiding in Kolkata.

Indian police officials have declined to comment publicly on the matter, noting that any such issue would fall under the jurisdiction of India’s Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Home Affairs.

The case continues to draw attention amid conflicting claims from Bangladeshi investigators, political sources, and Indian law enforcement agencies.