Case filed over death of Nazrul’s second wife, first wife arrested
G.M. Nazrul Islam and his first wife Maksuda Islam
Police have arrested Maksuda Islam, the first wife of Member of Parliament G.M. Nazrul Islam, after the hanging body of his second wife Mariam Khatun was recovered. Nazrul is also being questioned.
After Mariam’s hanging body was recovered from a flat at the residential building for MPs, known as the NAM Flat, in Dhaka on Sunday evening, police took Nazrul and Maksuda into custody and began questioning them.
Later that night, Mariam’s father Masum Billah filed a case with Sher e Bangla Nagar Police Station. Nazrul, Maksuda and Nazrul’s brother-in-law Obaidur Rahman were named as accused in the case on charges of abetting Mariam’s suicide.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Tejgaon Division Deputy Commissioner Ibn Mizan confirmed that Maksuda has been shown arrested in the case.
He told Agamir Somoy on Sunday morning that Maksuda Islam had been shown arrested. Member of Parliament Nazrul is still being questioned.
Veteran politician Nazrul is a member of parliament from the Satkhira 4 constituency. He was elected from Jamaat e Islami.
Last July, after a video showing intimate moments with Mariam was circulated, Nazrul announced his second marriage. His first wife also confirmed the news of her husband’s second marriage at the time.
However, Jamaat e Islami expelled him from the party citing moral misconduct. Nazrul’s parliamentary membership has remained intact despite this.
Following the incident, Nazrul began living with his second wife in a flat at Building 5 in the residential area for MPs on Manik Mia Avenue. Mariam’s hanging body was found in that flat.
Several lawmakers from Jamaat and its alliance partner National Citizens Party (NCP) told Agamir Somoy that they believed Mariam had died by suicide.
However, they could not explain why they believed this. Meanwhile, police recovered some notes from the flat. Various writings in the notes blame Nazrul.
A forensic team of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is examining the notes to determine whether they were actually written in Mariam’s handwriting.
Nazrul was not at the flat when the body was recovered. He had gone to a Dhaka court in the afternoon to submit the bail bond he had obtained from the High Court in a case related to his second wife.
Following the incident involving the viral video, Mariam’s uncle Obaidur Rahman filed a case against Nazrul. In the case filed with Pallabi Police Station in Dhaka on July 21, Obaidur Rahman alleged that he was beaten for protesting Nazrul’s alleged illicit relationship with Mariam and on suspicion that he had leaked the video.
Obaidur once worked as Member of Parliament Nazrul’s driver. They are also related. Because of this relationship, Nazrul used to visit Mariam’s home in Pallabi.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Nazrul developed an objectionable relationship with Mariam by making various promises and offering inducements, Obaidur alleged. He claimed that he used to protest against the relationship.
The case alleged that someone was blackmailing Nazrul over the intimate video. Suspecting Obaidur’s involvement, Nazrul attacked him, according to the case.
Nazrul was granted eight weeks’ bail by the High Court on August 10 in the case filed on charges of attempted murder. He had gone to a Dhaka court to submit the bail bond.
