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Wadud Bhuiyan

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Wadud Bhuiyan
ওয়াদুদ ভূইয়া
Member of Parliament
In office
10 October 2001 – 29 October 2006
Preceded byKalparanjan Chakma
Succeeded byJotindra Lal Tripura
ConstituencyKhagrachari
In office
25 February 1996 – 30 March 1996
Preceded byKalparanjan Chakma
Succeeded byKalparanjan Chakma
ConstituencyKhagrachari
Chairman of Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Board
In office
13 February 2002 – 22 November 2006
Preceded byTaracharan Chakma
(In Charge)
Succeeded byMd. Feroz Kibria
(In Charge)
Personal details
Born (1965-01-05) 5 January 1965 (age 59)
Ramgarh, Hill Tracts, East Pakistan
NationalityBangladeshi
Political partyBangladesh Nationalist Party
Alma materUniversity of Chittagong (MSS)
Websitewadudbhuiyan.com

Wadud Bhuiyan (born 5 January 1965) is a Bangladeshi politician. Bhuiyan was elected twice as the member of the Jatiya Sangsad from Khagrachari constituency respectively in the 6th and 8th National Parliamentary Elections.[1] In addition, he served as Chairman of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Board from 2002 to 2006.[2] He currently holds the posts of assistant employment secretary of Central Executive Committee of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)[3] and president of the opposition party's Khagrachari local unit as well.[4]

Early life and education

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Bhuiyan was born on 5 January 1965 to the Bengali Muslim Bhuiyan family of Ramgarh in Khagrachari District, which was then a part of East Pakistan's Hill Tracts district. He obtained his M.S.S degree on Sociology from the University of Chittagong in 1986.

Career

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Student politics

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Bhuiyan was active in student politics at Chittagong University. He was the convener, which was equivalent to the post of president, of the Chittagong University unit of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, the student wing of BNP, from 1987 to 1989. Concurrently, he served as the president of the Ramgarh unit of the student organization from 1980 to 1990.

Public office

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In 1989, Bhuiyan was elected as the counselor of the Khagrachari Hill District Council with a majority of few thousands votes. He later resigned, along with another counselor, from the post, protesting the then-chairman Samiran Dewan's alleged corruption.[5]

Bhuiyan had also participated in the 5th (1991) and 7th (1996) parliamentary elections as the sole candidate of BNP, only to have been defeated by comparatively close margins.[6]

In the 6th parliamentary election, in 1996, he was nominated and elected as the candidate of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) from Khagrachari constituency. In 1997, he filed a petition with the high court challenging the reservation of post of chairperson of the Chittagong Hill Tracts District Councils for indigenous people.[7]

In the 9th parliamentary election, in 2001, Bhuiyan was again nominated as the candidate of the BNP and elected by a significant margin.[8] It was alleged militant Bengali settlers intimidated tribal votes which led to his "shock" victory.[9] During his term Khagrachari saw expansion of Bengali settlements called cluster village, including beside Sajek road.[10] His former bodyguard, Mohammad Joynal Abedin, was elected mayor of Khagrachari in 2004.[11] He filed 19 defamation cases against the Matiur Rahman, editor of Prothom Alo, its publisher, and reporter.[12] As Chairman of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Board, he was biased towards Bengali settlers.[13]

Parbattya Chattagram Jano Sanghati Samity raised allegations of corruption against Bhuiyan in 2008.[14] Bhuiyan's political protegee, Mohammad Selim, received government contracts in Khagrachari through his influence.[15] His aid and Village Defense Party member, Mohammad Abdus Salam illegally occupied land and built homes worth 40 million BDT.[16] His another aid, Joynal Abedin, was an advisor of the Parbattya Chattagram Samo Adhiker Andolon.[17]

In 2001, he was appointed as a member of the parliamentary standing committee on Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs, with BNP chairperson and Prime Minister Khaleda Zia heading the committee.[18]

In 2002, he was appointed as the chairman of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Board, a government agency established in 1978 by Ziaur Rahman, the founder of the BNP and then-President of Bangladesh.[19]

In the 10th parliamentary election, he couldn't participate due to his imprisonment during military influenced then-caretaker government's period for misappropriating public funds.[20] In the last parliamentary election held in 2018, his candidacy was revoked by the Bangladesh Election Commission and then confirmed by the Bangladesh High Court as well after he filed an appeal.[21][22] In December 2018, he was injured in an attack by Awami League activists while campaigning for Shahidul Islam Bhuiyan Farhad, candidate of the Jatiya Oikya Front.[23]

Political activism

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Bhuiyan is known as the leader of the people with Bengali lineage living in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. He was also known for his vocal position to the militant activities of Shanti Bahini, the rebellious military wing of the Parbatya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samiti (PCJSS) that operated until the Chittagong Hill Tracts Peace Accord was signed between the Bangladesh government and the PCJSS in 1997.

Bhuiyan was the architect[24] behind the foundation of Parbatya Chattagram Sama-Odhikar Andolon (Chittagong Hill Tracts Equal-Rights Movement), an organization which demanded an equal share for Bengali in any dispensation intended for ethnic people.[25][26] It is opposed to the Chittagong Hill Tracts Peace Accord.[27] In 2004, it attacked the motorcade of Dr Kamal Hossain, leader of the Gono Forum, while he was on his way to Rangamati to attend a meeting of the Jonosanghoti Samity.[27] While Prime Minister Khaleda Zia assured Kamal Hossain of a proper investigation, the Home Minister Altaf Hossain Chowdhury blamed it on Kamal Hossain and his supporters.[27] A case was filed against Bhuiyan over the attack.[28] Syed Badrul Ahsan held Bhuiyan as one of the people responsible for tensions in the hill tracts.[29]

Arrests

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Bhuiyan was also arrested during the caretaker government's period on 4 February 2007 from Baithak, his house in Khagrachar which was later seized by Bangladesh Police.[30][31] The Anti-Corruption Commission and the National Board of Revenue seized his imported BMW, worth 30 million BDT, from the home of Mohammad Mahfuz, his friend and Bangladesh Nationalist Party politician.[32] His assets were frozen in May 2007 on court orders.[33] A special court in Chittagong sentenced him to 20 years in jail.[34] He worked as a gardener in jail.[35] However, this conviction order, along with seven orders, was later stayed by the High Court,[36] and he was granted bail for six months.[37] He had 20 criminal cases filed against him.[38]

References

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  1. ^ "Members of Parliament : Profile".
  2. ^ "All legal arms must be deposited by Dec 24". The Daily Star. 20 December 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  3. ^ "Cases, arrests worrying opposition candidates". New Age. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
  4. ^ "Oppositions struggle to survive attacks, police raids". New Age. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  5. ^ "1st Elected Members: Khagrachari Hill Districts Council".
  6. ^ "Compare 1991, 1996, 2001 results - Amardesh".
  7. ^ Imam, Shah Husain (18 July 1997). "CHT Peace Talks: Chips are Down". The Daily Star. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  8. ^ "Bangladesh Parliament Election - Detail Results - Amar Desh Online". amardesh.com. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
  9. ^ Mohaiemen, Naeem (24 December 2008). "Between ashes and hope". The Daily Star. Retrieved 23 September 2024. In 2001, militant Settlers aggressively intimidated Pahari voters to stay away from polls (resulting in shock victory of BNP's Wadud Bhuyan, now jailed on corruption).
  10. ^ "Ration for 28,000 more Bengali speaking families in CHT on cards". The Daily Star. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  11. ^ "Khagrachhari mayor suspended again". The Daily Star. 12 March 2010. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  12. ^ "Law suit mulled to gag media". The Daily Star. 20 July 2009. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  13. ^ Panday, Pranab Kumar; Jamil, Ishtiaq (2 August 2009). "Agonies of indigenous people". The Daily Star. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  14. ^ "Manabendra Larma's contributions recalled". archive.thedailystar.net. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  15. ^ "Misappropriation of fund alleged". The Daily Star. 8 January 2009. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  16. ^ "Party in power made once VDP man a millionaire". The Daily Star. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  17. ^ "20 acre lands of tribesmen grabbed in Khagrachhari". The Daily Star. 2 March 2008. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  18. ^ "Standing Committee on Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts".
  19. ^ Amena Mohsin (2003). The Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh: On the Difficult Road to Peace. Lynne Rienner Publishers. p. 76. ISBN 978-1-58826-138-0.
  20. ^ Jamil, Dr Ishtiaq; Panday, Pranab Kumar (1 November 2008). "The Elusive Peace Accord in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh and the Plight of the Indigenous People". Commonwealth & Comparative Politics. 46 (4): 464–489. doi:10.1080/14662040802461141. ISSN 1466-2043. S2CID 154006067.
  21. ^ "BNP's Wadud turned down in candidacy appeal". The Daily Star. 10 December 2018. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  22. ^ "BNP's Wadud Bhuiyan, Abdul Wahab denied". The Daily Star. 6 December 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  23. ^ "20 hurt as BNP campaign attacked in Khagrachhari". The Daily Star. 26 December 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  24. ^ "Curfew clamped on Khagrachari town". Dhaka Mirror. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
  25. ^ "Militarization in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh" (PDF). IWGIA.
  26. ^ "Mainul asked to withdraw comment on CHT accord". The Daily Star. 7 December 2007. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  27. ^ a b c "Home Minister back with a Bang". Star Magazine. 5 March 2004. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  28. ^ "Local MP must take responsibility". The Daily Star. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  29. ^ Ahsan, Syed Badrul (6 December 2007). "The CHT accord was, and remains, a seminal achievement". The Daily Star. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  30. ^ "Jubo Dal trying to keep BNP alive in Khagrachhari". The Daily Star. 28 May 2008. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  31. ^ "Wadud's palatial house seized, Babul sent to jail". The Daily Star. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  32. ^ "BNP ex-MP Wadud's BMW seized". The Daily Star. 22 February 2007. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  33. ^ "Ex-MP Wadud Bhuiyan's properties frozen". The Daily Star. 15 May 2007. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  34. ^ "Ex-BNP MP Wadud Bhuiyan jailed for 20 years". bdnews24.com.
  35. ^ "They kill flies, work their way out of jails". The Daily Star. 10 December 2007. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  36. ^ "Conviction order of seven stayed by HC". The Daily Star.
  37. ^ "HC grants bail to ex-BNP MP Wadud Bhuiyan for six months". The Daily Star.
  38. ^ Majumder, Jasim; Khagrachhari (2 December 2008). "3 'criminals', 7 accused in Khagrachhari poll race". The Daily Star. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
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