Britain to deport fugitive BNP leader Tarique Rahman

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Anita Mathur

United Kingdom is going to deport Tarique Rahman, leader of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) for the reasons of violating the existing laws of political asylum. Under the existing immigration law, none of the persons getting political asylum in United Kingdom are allowed to participate into any political activities at his/her country of origin, commit serious criminal offenses including participate into terrorism and militancy as well as do anything which would jeopardize the relations between Britain and the countries concerned. Taking undue advantage of asylum, Tarique Rahman has been actively doing politics in Bangladesh as well as has actively participated in criminal and terrorist activities.

Other cases of deportation:

In December last year, a court in the United Kingdom issued the verdict of deporting Vijay Mallya, the multimillionaire former owner of the Force India Formula One team and self-proclaimed “King of the Good Times”.

Mallya, 62, chairman of the Indian brewery giant UB Group, is wanted in his home country in relation to £1bn of unpaid debts incurred by his now-defunct Kingfisher Airline. Mallya, who was once known as the “Branson of Bangalore” for his business and sport empire, denied any wrongdoing. He has been fighting to remain in the UK, where he lives in a £11.5m mansion in the sleepy Hertfordshire village of Tewin.

Meanwhile, a sacked officer of Bangladesh Army, Shahid Uddin Khan, along with his wife and daughters have been residing in Britain though immigration obtained under investor’s category are also likely to be deported to Bangladesh soon. According to police sources, Shahid Uddin Khan and his family are accused in a number of criminal cases in Bangladesh. Bangladesh Police on January 17, 2019 raided the Dhaka residence of this fugitive family and seized huge volume of detonators, explosives, counterfeit currency note, Islamic State propaganda materials and recruitment tools and weapons. Three separate cases were lodged on the same day with the Cantonment Police Station in this regard. These include, CR case number 4466/2009, dated December 30, 2009, under section 416, 467, 471 and 109 of the Bangladesh Penal Code, which is under trial with the Court of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate; Case number 10, dated January 17, 2019, under section 6 (2), 7, 11 and 12 of the Anti Terrorism Act of 2009; Case number 11, dated January 17, 2019, under section 25/A of the Special Powers Act of 1974; and Case number 12, dated January 17, 2019, under section 19/A of the Arms Act of 1878.

Shahid Uddin Khan and his family has smuggled out millions of dollars from Bangladesh and invested in various business ventures in United Arab Emirates and Britain.

There are warrants of arrest against Shahid Uddin Khan in Bangladesh and his name already appears in the listed as the ‘Most Wanted’ criminal. But, law enforcing agencies in Bangladesh are unable to nab this notorious culprit as he has been living in Britain as a fugitive. In UK Shahid Uddin Khan has a girlfriend named Julia, whom he falsely introduces as his ‘adopted daughter’. According to information, Julia was connected with Muslim Brotherhood through her previous husband.

Background of Shahid Uddin Khan:

On January 16, 2019 Lt Col Shahid Uddin Khan (dismissed from Bangladesh Army on corruption cases), gave an interview to ION TV, Britain, where he falsely claimed himself to be a very bright and honest officer, who in spite of being innocent was inappropriately dismissed by Bangladesh Army Authority.

Under the circumstances, through a neutral study about his career, a number of grave wrongdoings were found against him.

During his service at the then Bangladesh Rifles (BDR), Battalion-6, in which he was tried under court martial from 28 November 2004 to10 February 2005 on various charges at the then BDR Headquarters at Pilkhana in Dhaka. The court brought total 28 charges against him. The investigation revealed  that he bribed Taka 4000.00 to  Naik Md. Abul Kalam Azad of Bangladesh Rifles (BDR), Battalion-6 for preparing drafts for his anonymous letters against Director General of BDR and other others and also  bribed Taka 6000.00 to lance Naik Abul Hosen for distributing the said anonymous letters to concerned places. Shahid Uddin Khan also threatened them with dismissal and jail if they disclosed his misdoings. He then destroyed his computer hard disc to wipe-off any evidence.

During his posting at Chapai Nawabgonj Shahid Uddin Khan developed unethical rapport with a local MP of Chapai Nawabgonj Constituency- 3, Harun Ur Rashid and his wife who now a BNP (Bangladesh Nationalist Party) leader. It has been known that he was posted to Bangladesh Riffles, Battalion-6 at the pursuation of the wife of Harun Ur Rashid as Shahid Uddin Khan was actively collaborating Harun in smuggling activities.  At one stage, Shahid also developed illicit physical relationship with Harun’s wife.

However, Colonel Shahid had to cover up his this illegal involvement by bribing local BNP leaders and well as by allowing them in continuing their smuggling activities. Shahid Uddin Khan’s illegal activities continued unchallenged due to his extreme intimacy with several leaders of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).

Nasty private life of Shahid Uddin Khan:

Farjana Anjum, wife of Lt Col (sacked) Shahid Uddin Khan never hired any female domestic help because of her husband’s nasty character, especially after Shahid established illicit physical relationship with a female domestic help named Ratna. It is learnt from sources, Shahid Uddin Khan had compelled Ratna in having physical relationship with him. As a result, Ratna became pregnant and she was hurriedly married-off by Shahid by paying a handsome amount of cash to Ratna’s husband. Shahid Uddin Khan also used to keep young boys as his domestic help and had illicit sexual relations with them. When his wife and daughters went to United Kingdom, Shahid Uddin Khan’s sexual perversion reached optimum level. He compelled Nahid Parvin Neeru, wife of his top accomplice Sajjad Hussain in having physical relations. Each month, Shahid was paying Taka forty thousand to Neeru as she almost became his kept.

Mystery behind Shahid Uddin Khan’s becoming rich:

Lt Col (sacked) Shahid Uddin Khan became wealthy by collaborating with smugglers when he was sent to the Bangladesh Riffles (BDR) on deputation. Later in 2007, he sold a half-completed cold storage named Bondishahi Cold Storage in Cumilla district at a price which was 70 times higher than existing market price. On receiving this fund, he immediately smuggled out a few million dollars to United Kingdom, where he along with his entire family took immigration under investor category. In the UK, Shahid has established a company named Zumana Investment & Properties Limited with his ill-gotten money. Although the total amount of investment was sent to UK through illegal channels, British authorities had no problem in accepting this dirty money.

On investigation, Bondishahi Cold Storage in Cumilla district is found to be a half-done project.

Bank forgery by Shahid Uddin Khan:

In May 2012, Lt Col (sacked) Shahid Uddin Khan withdrew few million Taka from his wife’s Fixed Deposit (FDR) with the Eastern Bank Limited, Gulshan branch. Due to substantial amount deposit, Farjana Anjum is a “Premium Client” of the bank. Taking this advantage, Shahid Uddin Khan had asked the “Premium Client” department of the bank to visit his house along with required forms for getting signature of his wife Farjana Anjum to cash the FDR despite the fact, at that time Farjana already was in the UK. The then female receptionist in Shahid’s office had forged Farjana Anjum’s signature at the instruction of Shahid Uddin Khan. This particular case is a clear forgery, which is punishable under the existing law of Bangladesh.

Business relations with Dawood Ibrahim’s racket:

According to information, Shahid Uddin Khan has invested approximately US$ 10 million in arms and drug trade under the trans-national crime racket of notorious Dawood Ibrahim. He also has active participation behind Pakistani-ISI’s secret venture of selling counterfeit Indian currency.

Plot of terror attack in Bangladesh and India:

Since February 2018, Shahid Uddin Khan has been communicating with some of the members of Pakistan-based radical Islamic militancy outfit and has been plotting terror attacks in Bangladesh and India. Shahid Khan also maintains regular contact with India’s most-wanted terrorist Paresh Baruah. Due to such connections, Shahid Uddin Khan has been providing fund to various militancy outfits.

Conglomerate of jihadists:

While Qatar already is known as a terror-patron nation, its controversial TV channel Al Jazeera has already stood in support of ISIS-funder Shahid Uddin Khan. Recently this channel has published a propaganda material filled with lies and false information. A shrewd Shahid Uddin Khan has prepared few documents and made false claims of three of his cohorts being “abducted” by the law enforcing agencies. In reality, three of these men had gone into hiding at the instruction of Shahid Uddin Khan with the ulterior agenda of defaming Bangladeshi law enforcing agencies. Following publication of this propaganda material in Al Jazeera, Lt Col (sacked) Shahid Uddin Khan along with some of his associated in Britain are making frantic bids in getting the same published in other news platforms in UK as well as in some other countries. Some individuals already are hired by this notorious man for running the propaganda.

The laws and provisions of asylum:

The UK has extensive provisions in place to provide protection to persons seeking asylum while protecting the public from individuals who may exploit the asylum system.  The application process for asylum seekers starts at the border.  A fast-track process has been developed to help reduce the extensive caseload of asylum cases, which allows certain applications to be rejected upon receipt if the individual is from a country deemed safe by the UK.  For all other applicants, a decision is made on the well-established criteria of whether the individual has a well-founded fear of persecution or other harm.

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, consisting of England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, has recently undergone a period of devolution with the creation of a Scottish Parliament, a Welsh Assembly, and a Northern Ireland Assembly (currently suspended) that can legislate in certain areas.  Citizenship and nationality are not devolved areas, however, and thus remain the responsibility of the Parliament.  The Secretary of State for the Home Department (a member of the British executive branch) and his department, commonly referred to as the Home Office, has responsibility for almost all matters relating to immigration, including asylum, nationality, and border control laws.

Since 1891, the common law of the UK has provided that “no alien has any right to enter this country except by leave of the Crown.”  The Aliens Restriction Act 1941 the Aliens Restriction (Amending) Act 1919, and the Rules and Orders made under these Acts gave the common law rule a statutory basis and formed the restrictions on immigration.

The statutory regime governing immigration in the UK is currently contained in the Immigration Act 1971 and the Immigration Rules made under it.  The Immigration Rules are a fluid set of rules that change frequently.  To change them, a Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules is laid before Parliament; these changes enter into law within forty days unless Parliament objects to them.  The law requires individuals who are not British or Commonwealth citizens with the right of abode in the UK or members of the European Economic Area  to obtain leave to enter the UK from an immigration officer upon their arrival.

The early 2000s saw record numbers of individuals seeking asylum in the UK, peaking at 84,132 in 2002.  These numbers led to significant public discontent, so the government introduced a number of measures that sought to limit the number of applicants entering the country, which included making it more difficult to obtain asylum and decreasing the benefits that asylum applicants could receive.  As a result the number of asylum seekers dropped to a low of 17,916 in 2010.  In 2014, the numbers rose again to 25,033, with asylum seekers forming 4.1 percent of immigrants entering the UK during that year.  In 2014, most asylum seekers were nationals of African countries (35 percent), Asian countries (32 percent), and Middle Eastern nations (20%).  Ten percent of applicants were from Europe.  As of August 2015, 9,756 applications for asylum from 2014 had been granted, amounting to approximately 50 percent of those with known outcomes.  8,634 applications had been refused or withdrawn, or 44.3 percent.  Appeals were lodged in 74.3 percent of the 2014 cases in which asylum was initially refused, and of those for which the outcome was known, 30.1 percent of the appeals were approved.

Government Departments Responsible for Asylum:

The Home Office is the government department with primary responsibility for almost all aspects relating to immigration, including asylum, nationality and border control laws.  There are various directorates within the Home Office that handle specific items relating to these areas of responsibility.

Asylum Laws and Policy:

Asylum is the term given to the protection offered to individuals who are fleeing persecution in their own country.  As a general rule, asylum seekers may apply for asylum only after entering the UK.  Asylum applicants who meet the application criteria receive refugee status.  Applicants who do not receive refugee status may still be granted leave to remain in the UK for humanitarian or other reasons if there is a real risk that they would suffer serious harm after returning to their country of origin.  The nature of this harm is not specified in the UN Convention and Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees.  Refugee status and humanitarian protection provide the individual with permission to reside in the UK for an initial period of five years, with the right to work and access welfare benefits.  Lawful residence in the UK for a continuous period of five years generally qualifies an individual to apply for UK citizenship.

International Convention:

The Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, also known as the 1951 Refugee Convention, is a United Nations multilateral treaty that defines who is a refugee, and sets out the rights of individuals who are granted asylum and the responsibilities of nations that grant asylum. The Convention also sets out which people do not qualify as refugees, such as war criminals. The Convention also provides for some visa-free travel for holders of travel documents issued under the convention. Although the Refugee Convention was agreed in Geneva, it is considered incorrect to refer to it as “the Geneva Convention” because that term is more widely understood as referring to any of four treaties regulating armed conflict.

The Refugee Convention builds on Article 14 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which recognizes the right of persons to seek asylum from persecution in other countries. A refugee may enjoy rights and benefits in a state in addition to those provided for in the Convention.

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