Rangpur Police Commissioner Abdul Mabud has been transferred, and Special Branch DIG Mahbubur Rashid has been appointed as the new commissioner of Rangpur Metropolitan Police. The transfer was ordered through a Ministry of Home Affairs notification issued on Tuesday.

Mabud assumed responsibility as Rangpur Metropolitan Police commissioner on 12 August. His transfer came only 13 days after taking up the post. The source does not state the reason for the ministry’s transfer order.

The change in the commissioner’s post followed the recovery of four bodies from the Daspara-Machhuapara area of Rangpur city on Saturday night. The victims were retired Rangpur Zilla School teacher Ganapati Chakraborty and three family members. Police later detained two suspects and said they had killed Chakraborty, his wife, daughter and son one by one.

Police arrested Vidisha Ershad, the second wife of late president Hussain Muhammad Ershad, in Dhaka’s Gulshan area on Tuesday, August 25. She was detained at about 8:30pm from Erabika Restaurant in Gulshan-2 after an arrest warrant had been issued against her, according to Gulshan police station Officer-in-Charge Md Daud Hossain.

Police said a financial fraud case was filed against Vidisha Ershad at Gulshan police station. A court sentenced her to two years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Tk10,000 in that case.

An arrest warrant was subsequently issued against her, police said. After the warrant was issued, she went into hiding before police later located and arrested her.

International Crimes Tribunal Chief Prosecutor Aminul Islam said every enforced disappearance case will be treated seriously and justice will be ensured without political consideration. He made the remarks at a Tuesday press briefing at his office after meeting relatives of disappearance victims led by Sanzida Islam Tuli, coordinator of the family platform Mayer Dak.

Tuli alleged that efforts by former chief prosecutor Tajul Islam to investigate and prosecute disappearances had been influenced by political considerations. Aminul said victims would not be viewed according to party affiliation, whether linked to Jamaat-e-Islami, BNP or another group. He cited councillor Ekram, described as an Awami League member who was killed in what he said was a crossfire operation planned under the Awami League government, as an example of a case now being prosecuted.

Aminul said about 250 families of disappearance victims have been identified. Investigators have preliminarily verified the allegations and confirmed that the individuals were abducted by law-enforcement agencies, he said. Statements from every affected family are being recorded. Five designated officers with specialist disappearance-investigation experience have been assigned, and he requested reasonable additional time to conclude investigations and submit one or two reports for trial.

Two students from Gobra Madrasa in Gopalganj Sadar have been reported missing since Monday, according to their families and madrasa authorities. The missing students are Imam Samaddar, 13, son of Nur Mohammad Samaddar of Matla village, and Tamim, 18, of Sonakur village. Both were wearing panjabis and pyjamas when they went missing.

Madrasa teacher Md Saidur Rahman said the two students left the institution around Monday afternoon without informing anyone. They did not return afterward, prompting the madrasa authorities to notify their families about the matter.

Gopalganj Sadar police station Officer-in-Charge Aminul Islam said neither the families nor the madrasa authorities had informed police about the students' disappearance. He said necessary legal action would be taken if a complaint is filed.

Chattogram District Commissioner and District Magistrate Mohammad Zahidul Islam Miah said academic certificates and GPA-5 results alone do not constitute true education, stressing honesty, morality and human values. He made the remarks on Tuesday, 25 August, at a meeting on implementing the National Integrity Strategy and achieving Sustainable Development Goals at Sitakunda উপজেলা পরিষদ auditorium, followed by an anti-drug gathering at Bhaterkhil High School in Muradpur Union.

Addressing students, he said education should also be measured by whether learners become honest, humane and responsible. He called on families, educational institutions, the administration and society to work together to protect young people from drugs and harmful culture. He also emphasized involving students in sports and positive social activities.

At the meeting, the commissioner urged officials to ensure transparent, accountable public services without harassment. Discussions covered Sitakunda’s development, service quality, administrative coordination, integrity strategy implementation and SDG targets, including law and order in Jangal Salimpur. He later distributed wheelchairs, welfare grant cheques, educational and sports materials, and health supplies to beneficiaries.

The Allahabad High Court dismissed a petition by Sukaina Rizvi, a minor Class 11 student at Tagore Public School in Atarsuiya, Prayagraj, seeking permission to wear a hijab with her school uniform. A division bench of Justice J. J. Munir and Justice Indrajeet Shukla ruled that the petitioner had not provided sufficient facts or legal grounds to establish hijab as a mandatory or essential Islamic religious practice.

Rizvi told the court that she had worn a hijab since childhood and had previously been allowed to wear it with her uniform while studying in Classes 6 to 10 at the same school. She argued that denial of permission violated Articles 14 and 19(1)(a) of the Constitution. The court said protection under Article 25 could not be claimed merely through oral assertions without adequate factual and legal support.

The bench emphasized that a neutral, universal and non-discriminatory school dress code could be enforced to maintain discipline and institutional identity. It said uniforms support equality among students and a religiously neutral environment. The school argued that an exemption could disrupt administrative discipline, adding that other Muslim female students followed the prescribed dress code.

Opposition leader and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami chief Dr Shafiqur Rahman said assigning BNP members from reserved women’s seats additional responsibilities in opposition constituencies is completely unconstitutional. He made the remarks to journalists on Tuesday night after visiting the central office of the National Citizen Party, or NCP.

Rahman said the constitution contains no provision allowing members elected to reserved women’s seats to be given such additional responsibilities in opposition constituencies. He said there had also been no such practice in Bangladesh’s parliamentary democracy in the past. According to him, ministers have offered differing explanations when questioned about the appointments, making the government’s position less clear.

He also said the 50 women members from reserved seats were facing discriminatory treatment. While some allocation or funding arrangements were made after strong criticism in parliament, he described them as inadequate and said allocations should be equal for everyone. Rahman said a strong opposition is essential to a successful democratic state and that the current government bears the main responsibility for maintaining social stability.

The High Court has ordered authorities to dispose of an application seeking an inquiry into businessman and former Eastern Bank chairman Shawkat Ali Chowdhury within 30 days. The order was issued on Tuesday by a High Court bench led by Justice Fahmida Kader over allegations involving the laundering of $25 million to the United Kingdom.

The court also issued a rule asking why legal action should not be taken against the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit for its alleged failure to recover the money from the United Kingdom. The writ petition named the Anti-Corruption Commission and its chairman, the BFIU chief, the National Board of Revenue and the Bangladesh Bank governor as respondents.

According to the petition, the UK National Crime Agency found $25 million in Shawkat Ali Chowdhury’s name while investigating assets allegedly laundered by former land minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury. UK authorities reportedly sought a freezing order or mutual legal assistance request within four weeks, but the petition alleged no action was taken. It said the funds were later moved to the United Arab Emirates and were declared as undisclosed foreign assets in a tax return.

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami held a meeting at its central office to prepare for a Dhaka-Chattogram long march scheduled for September 5. The party said the meeting focused on ensuring that the programme is conducted peacefully, orderly and without disruption. Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar, convener of the long march implementation committee, presided over the gathering.

Leaders and representatives from areas along the route attended, including Dhaka, Narayanganj, Munshiganj, Cumilla, Feni and Chattogram. The 11-party alliance plans to stage the march around six demands, including implementation of the referendum verdict, trial of the July killings, resolving shortages of electricity, fuel, gas and fertilizer, curbing rising prices of essential goods, improving law and order, and ending narrow partisan control across the administration.

The programme includes a rally at Shapla Chattar, a human chain from Shapla to Laldighi, roadside meetings in Narayanganj, Cumilla, Feni and Mirsarai, and a final rally at Laldighi. Organisers were instructed to hold preparation meetings, conduct public outreach, distribute leaflets, contact the administration and coordinate with local alliance leaders.

A Dhaka metropolitan sessions court has rejected the bail petition of actor Ashraful Haque Don, who was arrested in the Salman Shah murder case. The order was issued on Tuesday by the court of 11th Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge Md Nurul Islam. Don’s lawyer, Tarikul Islam Jewel, sought bail, but the court dismissed the application, according to bench assistant Faruk Dewan.

This was Don’s second unsuccessful bail bid. A Dhaka metropolitan magistrate court had also denied him bail on August 12, and he has remained in custody since his arrest. Immigration police arrested Don at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in the early hours of August 9, later handing him to the CID before he was sent to jail through a court order.

CID inspector Md Mujibur Rahman has sought seven days of remand for Don, with a hearing scheduled for August 27. Investigators cited the need to uncover the case’s facts, identify and arrest other associates or relevant people, and examine Don’s reported attempt to travel abroad. The investigation report in the murder case is due on August 30.

The government has decided to introduce gas rationing at CNG stations to address an intensifying energy shortage and sustain industrial and commercial production in Bangladesh. The decision was made at a second consultation meeting with private-sector entrepreneurs chaired by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. Entrepreneurs will also be allowed to transport gas from Bhola gas fields to their factories by truck under their own arrangements, subject to required approvals.

Bangladesh Bank and the Energy and Mineral Resources Division have been assigned to implement time-based allocation of gas supplied through CNG stations for industrial and commercial purposes. The government expects gas saved through limits or temporary closures at CNG stations to be redirected to factories and power generation. The source says industrial output has been disrupted, while transport operators have faced long waits at filling stations and households have experienced unreliable gas stoves.

Business leaders welcomed the measures as potentially helpful, while calling for broader solutions. DCCI President Taskin Ahmed urged diversified LNG sources, stronger storage capacity and faster domestic exploration. BGMEA proposed prioritising gas connections for garments and textiles and shifting gas from gas-fired power plants to oil-fired plants for industrial use.

Israeli forces entered a facility operated by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, in the Qalandiya area of the occupied West Bank and raised an Israeli flag there. The training center, which had operated for more than 70 years, has now been closed. It previously provided technical training each year to more than 300 Palestinians from different parts of the occupied West Bank.

UNRWA said Israeli forces entered the site without its permission or consent. Israel said it plans to establish a new educational center and community complex at the location. Palestinians said they view the move as part of a broader Israeli campaign against them.

Protests were held against the operation, during which Israeli soldiers fired tear gas at Palestinians. A Palestinian teenager was wounded by gunfire amid the clashes. Israeli forces had previously entered the UNRWA facility in February last year and ordered it to be vacated. UNRWA, founded in 1949, provides various forms of assistance to about six million Palestinians in the occupied Palestinian territories, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

Islami Chhatra Shibir’s Dhaka North branch honored more than 400 students who achieved GPA-5 in this year’s SSC, Dakhil and equivalent examinations. The ceremony was held on Tuesday morning at Al-Falah auditorium in Moghbazar, Dhaka, where guests presented the students with commemorative crests and gifts.

Speaking as chief guest, the organization’s central president Nurul Islam Saddam said it aimed to build a welfare-oriented, justice-based Bangladesh with young people. He urged high-achieving students to contribute their talent, youth and energy to that goal. He also said success requires perseverance, advising students to make their highest effort consistently for at least two years and not be discouraged by others’ achievements.

Central publication secretary Amirul Islam told students not to become arrogant because of success and to remain humble and responsible toward parents, teachers and society. Central publicity secretary and DUCSU general secretary SM Farhad said Chhatra Shibir encourages students to become highly skilled and qualified in their respective fields through its syllabus, programmes and training activities. Dhaka North president Saiful Islam Sayem chaired the event.

Gold smuggling through Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka continues despite seizures and intensified surveillance, according to customs, police and intelligence-linked accounts cited in the report. From 2021 to 2026, more than 100 operations seized nearly 2,000 kilograms of gold, valued at about Tk5,000 crore. Authorities recorded large consignments concealed in aircraft compartments, cargo and fruit crates, while alleged ringleaders remain beyond reach.

Dhaka Custom House data show 697 kilograms were seized in 2021-22, followed by 554 kilograms in 2022-23 and 417 kilograms in 2023-24. Airport police registered 541 gold-smuggling cases over the past five years. Intelligence sources said the networks use more than 50 concealment methods and may involve passengers as well as aviation-related workers. An aviation expert said coordinated support within airport operations was likely needed for repeated large shipments.

Three major consignments were seized this year, including 17.901 kilograms from a Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight on March 28 and 18.720 kilograms on July 2. Customs and airport officials said surveillance and operations will continue, while police said they are working to identify the principal figures, particularly on the Dubai route.

Israeli forces raided a training centre run by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, in occupied East Jerusalem. Staff members were ordered out of the facility, and an Israeli flag was later raised in its compound. Israel’s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, welcomed the operation and expressed satisfaction after the raid and flag-raising.

UNRWA said the action was a direct violation of international law. International law experts were also cited as viewing the incident in the same way. The entry of Israeli forces into a facility operated by a United Nations agency and the removal of its staff have been described as serious, raising legal questions over interference with UN agency operations.

UNRWA provides education, healthcare and other humanitarian assistance to Palestinian refugees. The raid on its premises and the raising of the Israeli flag have generated renewed concern, according to the source. Ben-Gvir, described as a hardline politician known for his strict stance toward Palestinians, publicly supported the operation, which the report presents as reflecting that position.