In a significant development, the police in Chittagong have seized 20,300 uniforms allegedly made for the armed group Kuki-Chin National Front (KNF) from a garment factory in the city. As per highly placed sources, the uniforms were recovered from the factory located in the Bayazid Bostami area, on the night of May 17.
During the operation, three individuals, including the factory owner, were arrested.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Sahedul Islam, Golam Azam, and Niyaz Haider. Sahedul Islam is the owner of the factory, while the others were responsible for ordering the production of the uniforms. It was reported that the details of the operation became public only on Sunday, seven days after the seizure and arrests took place.
Bayazid police station filed a case on May 18 under anti-terrorism laws, with four individuals named as defendants. The case was filed by Sub-Inspector Iqbal Hossain from the city’s detective police. Along with the arrested trio, the case also includes one Monghlasung Marma, 37, from Kaptai, Rangamati district, as a suspect.
According to the case details, Golam Azam and Niyaz Haider were the ones who placed the order for the uniforms in March, in a deal worth two crore taka. They were in contact with Monghlasung Marma, who, along with members of the KNF, provided the clothing. The garments were to be supplied this month.
The police have not yet issued an official statement regarding the case, but from the investigation, it was revealed by sources that the garments were made specifically for the KNF, an armed group that has been operating in the Chittagong Hill Tracts since early 2022
The police operation was carried out based on a tip-off, leading to the arrest of Sahedul Islam in Bayezid area and Golam Azam and Niyaz Haider in Halishahar Chotopul area. A total of 20,300 uniforms, packed in 320 sacks from the Bayezid area warehouse and 260 sacks from a factory in Nayarhat area, were recovered.
