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Shamsul Haider Siddique

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Shamsul Haider Siddique
Allegiance Bangladesh
Service / branch Bangladesh Army
Bangladesh Rifles
Years of service1976 - 2009
Rank Colonel
UnitArmy Service Corps
Commands
Battles / warsChittagong Hill Tracts Conflict
2006–2008 Bangladeshi political crisis

Shamsul Haider Siddique is a former Bangladesh Army officer and former deputy inspector general of prisons of Bangladesh Jail.[1] He was second in command of the prison system and served under brigadier general Mohammad Zakir Hassan.[2] He served[3] during the 2006–2008 Bangladeshi political crisis began as a military backed caretaker government assumed power at the end of October 2006 following the end of term of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party administration during time numerous politicians, including former ministers and two former prime ministers, were jailed.[4][5][6][7]

Siddique was responsible for the special cell where former prime ministers Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia were detained.[8][9][10] He oversaw the detention of more than a hundred political prisoners.[11]

Career

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On 20 June 2007, Siddique reported AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed, convicted assassin of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, is seeking to appeal the death penalty against him.[12] In September, he escorted Arafat Rahman Koko, son of former Prime Khaleda Zia, to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University where he was subsequently admitted.[13] In November, he put prisons on alert across Bangladesh after Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh tried to carryout a jail break in Comilla.[14] He was the jailer of the Special Prison (sub-jail) established in the Jatiya Sangsad, the national parliament, where former Prime Ministers Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia were detained.[8][9] Siddique went a study tour of Iran sponsored by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.[15]

In December 2007, Siddique told The Daily Star that there were 600 prisoners sent to rigorous imprisonment who were given the duty to kill flies as they were too weak for more heavy duty work.[16] He also told the newspaper that former Minister of Home Affairs Mohammad Nasim and former State Minister of Civil Aviation and Tourism Mir Mohammad Nasiruddin were working as librarians.[16] He mentioned other ministers Wadud Bhuiyan, Amanullah Aman, and Ruhul Kuddus Talukder Dulu were working as gardeners.[16] He told ATN Bangla, that former Minister of Law Moudud Ahmed spent his days writing in jail.[17] He also spoke to the media about Altaf Hossain Chowdhury and Nazmul Huda.[17]

Siddique helped Bangladesh Army and the Election Commission register prisoners for the voters list.[18] He reported that he only allowed the purchase of Islamic books now but various genres of books were purchased in the past.[19] He decided to purchase 6,500 Chinese .303 rifles and 10 thousand bullets from Bangladesh Police and Bangladesh Army for jail guards.[20] He choose to purchase 1000 rifles from the police and 5500 from the army.[20] Bangladesh army also consented to provide 550,000 bullets for free to the jail guards.[20] In June 2008, Sheikh Hasina was released from jail.[21] He organized field trips for children kept in jail with their detained mothers.[22] He reported the jails had no ambulances and there was a shortage of nurses and doctors.[23][24] In September 2008, Siddique visited Tarique Rahman son of former Prime Khaleda Zia, at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University and ordered the removal of prison guards as he had received bail.[25] In November, the government extended Siddiques job by one year,[11]

In January 2009, Siddique kept Ranglai Mro, an indigenous peoples rights activist detained in 2007, in handcuff while he was getting treated at the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases for injuries sustained during torture in custody which drew flank from the media.[26] Some guards clashed with students of the Bokshibazar Alia Madarssa over playing in a field owned by the jail in January 2009.[27] The Awami League comes to power in 2009 and Sheikh Hasina becomes Prime Minister replacing the caretaker government.[28] According to an investigation by a team of the Jail Directorate led by Commander M Zakaria Khan, Siddique was found guilty of violating 15 codes of the jail in February 2009.[29] He was found favoring convict Monowar Hossain Dipjol in prison and giving him special privileges such as allowing 200 visitors for Dipjol in 52 days.[29] In February, Inspector General of Prison Brigadier General Zakir Hassan was replaced with Brigadier General AHM Moqbul Hossain.[28] Siddique was transferred from Dhaka Division to Barisal-Khulna division and was replaced by Major Sheikh Saiful Alam from Chittagong Division.[28][30]

In 2022, Siddique the general manager of BM Container Depot, owned by Smart Group, in Sitakunda, Chittagong.[31][32] The depot caught fire in the 2022 Sitakunda fire which originated from the storage of the depot.[33]

References

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  1. ^ "Bangla seeks Interpol help to bring 2 HuJi men from India - Indian Express". The Indian Express. Retrieved 2023-02-06.
  2. ^ "14 VIPs 'overstay' at BSMMU prison cell". The Daily Star. 2008-01-28. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  3. ^ "AKM Mosharraf, ex-MP Milon freed on bail". The Daily Star. 2008-09-24. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  4. ^ Rahman, Waliur (8 January 2007). "Is Bangladesh heading towards disaster?". BBC News. Archived from the original on 14 November 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2007.
  5. ^ "Wikileaks Exposék M Hasan picked advisors before selection". bdnews24. 11 October 2011.
  6. ^ Rakib Hasnet Suman (6 August 2012). "Khaleda admits 2006 'mistake'". The Daily Start. Retrieved 10 December 2012.
  7. ^ Rakib Hasnet Suman (6 August 2012). "Khaleda admits 2006 'mistake'". The Daily Start. Retrieved 10 December 2012.
  8. ^ a b "Dr Wazed visits Hasina in jail". The Daily Star. 2007-10-31. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  9. ^ a b "Hasina seeks to withdraw Tk 7 lakh for tax payment". The Daily Star. 2007-10-02. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  10. ^ "Govt working on ways to 'release' 2 ex-PMs". The Daily Star. 2008-06-04. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  11. ^ a b "DIG prisons gets another year's tenure". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  12. ^ "Law and Our Rights". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2023-02-06.
  13. ^ "Koko admitted to BSMMU". The Daily Star. 2007-09-08. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  14. ^ "Jails on alert after failed JMB escape attempt". The Daily Star. 2007-11-27. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  15. ^ "List of Participants" (PDF). United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  16. ^ a b c Sarkar, Kailash (2007-12-10). "They kill flies, work their way out of jails". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2023-02-06.
  17. ^ a b "Days of former bigwigs in Dhaka jail". The Daily Star. 2007-08-18. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  18. ^ "2,054 Dhaka jail inmates made voters". The Daily Star. 2008-02-16. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  19. ^ Sarkar, Kailash (2008-02-07). "Dhaka Jail library left unused for years". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  20. ^ a b c Sarkar, Kailash (2008-04-19). "Arms, ammo being purchased to strengthen jail security". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  21. ^ "Sheikh Hasina released from prison". Mumbai Mirror. PTI. Jun 12, 2008. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  22. ^ "Fresh air for jail kids". The Daily Star. 2008-08-20. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  23. ^ Sarkar, Kailash (2008-06-01). "Jails desperate for doctors". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  24. ^ Sarkar, Kailash (2008-02-01). "Only 16 doctors treat 86,000 jail inmates". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  25. ^ "Tarique freed on bail". The Daily Star. 2008-09-04. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  26. ^ "Ranglai Mro still handcuffed". The Daily Star. 2009-01-23. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  27. ^ "25 injured in clash between jail guards and madarssa students". Hindustan Times. 2009-01-24. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  28. ^ a b c "Brig Gen Moqbul Hossain made IG-Prisons". The Daily Star. 2009-02-04. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  29. ^ a b Sarkar, Kailash (2009-02-07). "DIG-Prisons violated code, abused power". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2023-02-06.
  30. ^ "DIGs of prisons relocated". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  31. ^ "Ctg fire: CID seizes 7 DVRs of BM Container Depot". The Daily Star. 2022-06-11. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  32. ^ "Two injured BM Depot officials prosecuted". New Age. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
  33. ^ "DGHS and CID personnel visit Ctg's BM Depot, collect samples". The Daily Star. 2022-06-10. Retrieved 2023-02-07.
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