Police in Gopalganj Sadar upazila arrested an 18-year-old named Rahat Chowdhury on Sunday, January 25, 2026, for allegedly impersonating a member of the Bangladesh Army to commit fraud. He was sent to jail through the court the same day. Rahat, son of Delowar Chowdhury from Bhagyakul village in Srinagar upazila of Munshiganj, had been living in a rented house in Maulvibpara, Gopalganj.

According to local and police sources, Rahat was seen roaming suspiciously on Saturday night near Munshibari in Borni Dakshinpara of Tungipara upazila with a walkie-talkie in his pocket. When questioned by locals, he claimed to be an army officer engaged in intelligence work but failed to show any valid identification. Locals then informed the police, and a joint team from the army camp and Tungipara police arrested him, recovering a walkie-talkie from his possession.

Tungipara Police Station Officer-in-Charge Ayub Ali confirmed the incident, stating that Rahat admitted during preliminary questioning that he worked at a shop in Gopalganj town and was visiting a friend. A case has been filed against him, and he has been sent to the district jail.

A joint operation by the Coast Guard, Navy, and Police in Teknaf, Cox’s Bazar, led to the seizure of illegal drugs and weapons worth about Tk 6 crore. The operation, conducted on Saturday, January 24, 2026, under the banner of Operation Devil Hunt Phase-2, resulted in the arrest of three suspected drug traffickers. The recovered items included 1.25 kilograms of crystal meth (ice), 126 yaba tablets, one single-barrel gun, two walkie-talkies, 47 rounds of live ammunition, and eight locally made weapons.

According to Coast Guard Chattogram East Zone media officer Lt. Commander Suman Al Mukit, one of the detainees, Arafat Sani, is alleged to be the deputy publicity and publication secretary of the Teknaf Upazila Swechchhasebak League and president of the organization’s Ward No. 1 unit. The seized evidence and detainees were handed over to Teknaf Model Police Station for legal action. The Coast Guard stated that similar operations will continue to maintain law and order in the region.

Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) conducted an operation in the border area of Shyamnagar upazila in Satkhira, recovering firearms, ammunition, and a large quantity of drugs. The raid took place around 2:30 a.m. on Saturday, January 24, under the Nil Dumur Battalion (17 BGB) at the jurisdiction of the Nil Dumur RBG Company’s Koikhali Border Outpost. The operation was led by Havildar Md. Shahabur Rahman.

According to BGB sources, the seized items were found abandoned about one kilometer from the outpost and 200 meters south of the international border near the Koikhali sluice gate embankment. The recovered materials included a foreign revolver, six rounds of ammunition, 3,500 pieces of Indian yaba tablets, and 50 bottles of Indian cough syrup branded as ‘Win Carex’. The estimated market value of the seized goods is approximately Tk 1,131,200.

BGB reported that the firearms and ammunition have been handed over to Shyamnagar Police Station for legal action, while the drugs were transferred to the battalion headquarters. Legal proceedings are currently underway.

Eighteen microphones and five coils of wire were stolen from the election rally of Tareq Rahman in Chattogram, despite tight security measures. The theft occurred on Saturday night around the Polo Ground area, and a written complaint was filed with the Kotwali Police Station on Sunday morning by Abdur Razzak, owner of Dhaka Raj Sound System. He reported that 200 microphones had been installed for the rally, of which 18 and several coils of wire went missing.

Authorities had imposed strict security around the venue, deploying police, RAB, and intelligence personnel. The Chattogram Metropolitan Police (CMP) had banned drones, weapons, explosives, and any potentially hazardous items in and around the rally grounds. Despite these precautions, the theft took place, drawing mixed reactions when it became known on Sunday afternoon.

The sound system owner said two guards had been assigned to watch over the equipment overnight. Attempts to contact Kotwali Police Station Officer-in-Charge Aftab Uddin for comment were unsuccessful.

A young man was burned to death while sleeping inside a car workshop in Narsingdi’s Police Lines area late Friday night, January 23. The victim, identified as 23-year-old Chanchal Chandra Bhowmik from Lakshmipur village in Cumilla’s Barura upazila, worked at the workshop located in the Mosque Market. According to police and locals, unidentified individuals set fire under the shop’s shutter, causing a rapid blaze fueled by petrol and lubricants stored inside.

CCTV footage reportedly shows several people deliberately igniting the fire. Attempts to contact the shop owner, Md. Rubel Mia, were unsuccessful. Dr. Gulshana Kabir of Narsingdi Sadar Hospital confirmed that the body was brought in completely charred and later handed over to the family after autopsy. Officer-in-Charge A.R.M. Al Mamun said police recovered the body and collected CCTV footage, while multiple teams are working to identify the culprits.

Superintendent of Police Abdullah Al Faruk confirmed that the victim’s family is preparing to file a case. No arrests had been made as of the report’s publication.

A 21-year-old man named Animesh Bala died after allegedly consuming homemade liquor in the Kadambari area of Rajair upazila, Madaripur, on Saturday night. According to local and police sources, Animesh, son of Asim Bala from Sriphaldi village in Kotalipara upazila of Gopalganj, had come to Kadambari on Friday to visit during the Saraswati Puja. He reportedly drank locally brewed liquor at the Ganesh Pagol Sebashram field and later fell ill. His companions left him at a local garage when his condition worsened. After showing no improvement throughout Saturday, he was taken to a local hospital that night, where doctors declared him dead.

A local resident, requesting anonymity, said such incidents are not new in Kadambari, noting that another person named Pachu had died in a similar way recently. The area is known for widespread production of homemade liquor, attracting drinkers from distant places. Rajair police confirmed the death and sent the body to Madaripur Sadar Hospital morgue for autopsy.

A court has issued a travel ban on former Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Asaduzzaman Mia, his wife Afroza Zaman, daughter Ayesha Siddika, and sons Asif Shahadat and Asif Mahdin. The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has also formed a three-member team to investigate their assets. The order came after the ACC warned that the accused might flee abroad, hindering the recovery of key documents and assets related to the allegations.

Following the ACC’s petition, the court ordered the seizure of immovable assets worth Tk 22.65 crore belonging to eight individuals, including Mia and his family members. The seized properties include a six-storey residential building in Gulshan’s Joar Sahara, flats in Dhanmondi and Gulshan, and land in Purbachal, Aftabnagar, Gazipur, Faridpur, and Narayanganj. Court sources said the seizure was necessary to prevent irreversible loss to the state and ensure future confiscation if proven illicit.

Asaduzzaman Mia, arrested by RAB in September 2024, remains in custody. He served as DMP Commissioner from 2015 to 2019 and later as CEO of the National Security Cell until 2022.

The Ministry of Finance’s Social Safety Net Advisory Committee held its 32nd meeting on January 25, 2026, chaired by Economic Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed. The meeting approved an increase of Tk 5,000 in the monthly allowance for decorated freedom fighters and families of martyred freedom fighters, raising it from Tk 20,000 to Tk 25,000. Several other social welfare allowances, including those for widows, the elderly, persons with disabilities, and mothers under the Mother and Child Support Program, were also raised.

The committee finalized beneficiary numbers and allowance rates for 15 social safety programs for the 2026–27 fiscal year. Recommendations included bringing 273,514 new fishermen under the VGF program, increasing old-age allowance beneficiaries to 6.2 million, and expanding support for widows, disabled persons, and disadvantaged groups. The one-time medical assistance for patients with serious diseases was doubled to Tk 100,000, and the number of beneficiaries under the Food-Friendly Program was raised to 6 million families.

These adjustments aim to strengthen Bangladesh’s social protection framework and expand coverage for vulnerable populations in the upcoming fiscal year.

The submission of the investigation report in the murder case of Inkilab Moncho convener Shahid Sharif Osman Hadi has been postponed again. On Sunday, January 25, 2026, Dhaka Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Joshita Islam set a new date of January 29 for the report. This marks the third time the submission date has been delayed, confirmed by prosecution officer SI Rukonuzzaman. The Criminal Investigation Department (CID), responsible for the investigation, failed to submit the report on the scheduled date, prompting the court to fix a new one.

Hadi, who had announced his candidacy as an independent for the Dhaka-8 constituency in the upcoming 13th parliamentary election, was attacked on December 12 in the Bijoynagar area after Friday prayers. He was later flown to Singapore for advanced treatment but did not survive. Following the shooting, Inkilab Moncho member secretary Abdullah Al Jaber filed an attempted murder case on December 14, which was later amended to include murder charges under Section 302. The case was initially handled by local police before being transferred to the Detective Branch and then to the CID.

Around 30 teenagers were allegedly forced to squat while holding their ears by Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) executive member Sarmitra Chakma for playing on the university’s central playground. The incident, captured in a video that spread on social media on January 25, 2026, sparked widespread criticism and allegations of abuse of power. Witnesses said the video was recorded on January 6, showing Chakma holding a stick and reprimanding the boys, aged roughly 8 to 20, for being outsiders.

University officials and student leaders reacted with concern. The acting director of the Physical Education Centre called the act irregular and an abuse of authority if true. The university proctor said he was unaware of the video but noted that playing on the field requires permission. DUCSU General Secretary S.M. Farhad stated that no union representative has the right to exercise power or use force and promised action if any overreach occurred.

The video’s circulation triggered strong reactions online, with many users condemning the act as misconduct and demanding an investigation.

The Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Traffic Division conducted a citywide operation on Saturday, January 24, filing 1,502 cases against traffic law violators across various areas of the capital. The information was confirmed in a press release signed by Deputy Commissioner Muhammad Talebur Rahman of the DMP Media and Public Relations Department on Sunday, January 25.

According to DMP traffic sources, the breakdown of cases includes 73 in Ramna, 112 in Lalbagh, 189 in Motijheel, 95 in Wari, 145 in Tejgaon, 696 in Mirpur, 89 in Uttara, and 103 in Gulshan. During the operation, 362 vehicles were dumped and 150 were towed by wreckers.

The press release stated that the DMP Traffic Division will continue its operations to maintain traffic discipline across the Dhaka metropolitan area.

The interim government’s Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) has approved an additional Tk 25,592 crore for the Ruppur Nuclear Power Plant project, raising its total cost from Tk 113,092 crore to Tk 138,685 crore. The decision was made at ECNEC’s final meeting before the upcoming national election, chaired by Chief Adviser and ECNEC Chairperson Dr. Muhammad Yunus at the NEC Conference Room in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, Dhaka. Planning Adviser Dr. Wahiduddin Mahmud said the entire cost increase will be financed through project loans.

According to the Planning Ministry, the revised Development Project Proposal (DPP) recommends a 22.63 percent cost increase and extends the project deadline from 2024 to June 2028. The government’s direct funding share has been reduced by Tk 166 crore to Tk 21,886 crore, while project loans have risen to Tk 116,799 crore. Implemented with Russian cooperation, the plant aims to generate 2,400 megawatts of electricity from two units with a 60-year lifespan, extendable by 20 years.

The ECNEC meeting also approved 25 projects worth Tk 45,191 crore, including a 1,000-bed Bangladesh-China Friendship General Hospital and several infrastructure, transport, and environmental initiatives.

The Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (DSHE) has issued an urgent directive to ensure that the January 2026 salaries of MPO-listed teachers and employees are disbursed through the Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) system. The directive, released on Sunday, January 25, outlines the procedures for submitting salary bills online through the EMIS system’s MPO–EFT module.

According to the directive, the EFT-based payment process for MPO funds began on January 1, 2025, with direct transfers to individual bank accounts continuing through July 2025. From August 2025, institution heads have been required to submit bills online using their designated IDs and passwords. Each teacher or employee’s payable amount must be calculated separately and submitted accordingly.

The directive further states that any necessary deductions due to death, resignation, suspension, or unauthorized absence must be properly indicated during bill submission. The information submitted by institution heads will be considered final for EFT processing, and any errors leading to overpayment or complications will be the responsibility of the respective head.

Popular Bangladeshi singer Dilruba Khan, known for her hit song 'Pagol Mon', has released a new musical project featuring a traditional Puthi and Kiccha centered on former Prime Minister and BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia and her son Tarique Rahman. The artist announced the initiative on her Facebook page on January 25, 2026, explaining that the two pieces will be released on her YouTube channel 'Dilruba Khan Official' on January 25 and 26.

Dilruba Khan said her goal was not only to highlight two political figures but also to revive the fading folk art forms of rural Bangladesh. She described the project as an effort to bring back the melodic storytelling traditions that once enriched village life but are now disappearing amid modernization. Through rhythm and narrative, she sought to portray aspects of Khaleda Zia and Tarique Rahman’s lives and struggles.

The singer, who began her career performing songs by Abdul Alim, has long been recognized for her contributions to Bangladeshi folk music and film songs. This latest work continues her commitment to preserving the country’s cultural heritage.

Interim government’s Commerce Adviser Sheikh Bashir Uddin has assured that prices of daily essentials will not rise during the upcoming holy month of Ramadan, and that some items may even become cheaper. He made the statement on Sunday, January 25, 2026, following a taskforce meeting held to review the prices and market situation of essential food products ahead of Ramadan.

The adviser said that imports of daily essentials have increased by 40 percent compared to last year, which will help keep prices within people’s reach. He emphasized that the government expects stability in the market due to the higher import volume. Sheikh Bashir Uddin also commented on irregularities in major infrastructure projects such as the Padma Bridge, Karnaphuli Tunnel, and Payra Port during the previous government’s tenure, claiming that these projects had adverse economic effects.

When asked about any government project to build luxury flats for ministers, the adviser said he was not aware of such an initiative.