Dhaka North City Corporation’s Ward 49 Councillor Md. Anisur Rahman Naim got married in 2009. According to his tax return, he received 64 tolas (approximately 746 grams) of gold jewelry at the time of his wedding. The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) plans to interrogate his wedding guests to verify whether they indeed gave him this amount of gold as gifts. To do this, the ACC is planning to collect a list of the guests. ACC officials believe that by investigating and questioning the guests, the actual facts will come to light.
According to the organization, there have been allegations that Naim, the Councillor of Ward 49 of Dhaka North City Corporation, has acquired illegal wealth through extortion, manipulation of tenders, land grabbing, and other criminal activities. The complaint is being investigated by ACC Assistant Director Md. Mahbub Morshed of the Integrated District Office-1 in Dhaka. As part of the investigation, the ACC issued a notice on September 24, 2023, asking Naim to submit a statement of his assets. In response, he submitted his asset declaration. During the inquiry, the ACC collected tax documents and other records related to Councillor Naim.
According to his tax records, Naim owns approximately 3.125 kathas of land, has BDT 100,000 in cash, BDT 11.84 million in bank deposits, BDT 800,000 worth of shares in Golden Three Properties, a Prado car worth BDT 9 million, and various household items such as furniture, TVs, and refrigerators. He claimed to have taken a vehicle loan of BDT 10.609 million to buy the BDT 9 million car. The tax return also mentions that he received 64 tolas of gold jewelry as wedding gifts. Though the value was not specified in the return, the current market value is nearly BDT 10 million. The ACC suspects that receiving such a large quantity of gold jewelry as wedding gifts is questionable. Therefore, they want to confirm who attended the wedding and who gave the gifts. The ACC seeks to determine whether the jewelry was truly gifted or bought with illicit money and then reported as gifts in the tax return.
ACC Director General Syed Iqbal Hossain told the newspaper “Desh Rupantar” that many people use illegal funds to buy luxury items like cars, houses, land, and gold, and then label them as donations or gifts to launder the money. He added that if someone claims to have received a large amount of gold at their wedding, the investigation officer can uncover the truth by collecting the guest list and interrogating them.
In the so-called Kawla area, Naim’s force operates through a youth organization that unites the local youth and carries out all political activities for Naim. They also manage land deals, road tenders, cattle markets, and extortion in his name—all while staying out of public view. Some prominent members of this group include Ridoy Bepari (Naim’s cousin), Arif, Roni, Amdadul Haque, Dipu, Rashedul Haque, and others.
Reports suggest that Anisur Rahman Naim’s family once led a modest life. On November 16, 2019, he was elected General Secretary of the Dhaka North City Volunteer League. The same year, he was elected Councillor of Ward 49 of the DNCC. Since then, his family has become wealthy.
Ward 49 of DNCC includes the areas of Ashkona, Kawla, and Gawair. Naim is currently the Councillor. The ACC began investigating allegations of extortion, tender manipulation, land grabbing, criminal activities, and abuse of power on September 21, 2020. In 2023, further complaints were submitted against him. The ACC launched a follow-up investigation on June 18, 2023, combining the old and new allegations.
Investigation officer Md. Mahbub Morshed collected information from scheduled banks, the National Board of Revenue (NBR), the Registry Office, BRTA, and the Land Office. The documents are currently under review, and a report may be submitted to the commission soon. Further action will be taken based on that report.
According to complaints held by the ACC, Naim is known as a “terror” in the Airport and Ashkona areas. His family’s financial status improved rapidly after he became Councillor. In Airport, Kawla, Shialdanga, and Gawair, he has his own force involved in land grabbing and extortion. They are known locally as “Naim Khalifa.”
Airport Public Toilet Under Control
There are allegations that the Airport public toilet was taken over by a person named Tajul under Naim’s instructions. Naim receives a fixed monthly share of the income from this toilet. Several illegal hotels and shops have been set up around the toilet premises, with electricity sourced from the toilet. Thousands of gallons of water are sold daily, and vehicles are washed there. The daily income is around BDT 80,000. Tajul gives a portion to the city corporation, while the rest is shared among the group.
Madrasa Income Goes to Naim
It is alleged that Naim and his family have taken control of the Babus Salam Mosque-Madrasa Complex Market on the east side of the Airport Roundabout. Locals say donations to the mosque and market rent generate about BDT 5 million per month. Naim forcibly collects shop rents and spends the money at his discretion, without accountability. In October 2019, a clash over the mosque’s control resulted in four people being injured in an attack by “Naim Bahini.” Businessman Nazmul Hossain Bhuiyan (Prince) filed a police case against Naim and others. The trustee of Babus Salam Waqf Estate, Syed Mostafa Hossain, also filed a court case against Councillor Naim, Motaleb Munshi, and Mamun Sarkar.
Illegal Garage on Grabbed Land
Allegations state that Naim and his people grabbed around five bighas of land near the entrance of Ashiyan City in Kawla. An illegal bus terminal and rickshaw garage were built there and are being rented out. Naim’s councillor office is also located there. The group controls all contracts for construction and renovation in the Civil Aviation Staff Quarters of Kawla and reportedly also controls part of the Dhaka Customs House, generating large sums of money.
List of Extortion Sources
According to police reports cited in media, the ACC is investigating Naim’s extortion network. Allegations include:
BDT 180,000/month from Kasai Bari Public Toilet via Tajul Islam.
BDT 30,000/month from Airport Railway Station Toilet via Babu alias “Jamai Babu,” VP of South Khan Thana Volunteer League.
BDT 100,000/month from e-rickshaws on the Ashiyan City–Dakshinkhan Bazar–Gawair route.
BDT 100,000/month from autorickshaws on the Kawla Railgate–Shialdanga–Dakshinkhan Bazar route via Azmer.
BDT 30,000/month from six bus counters at Kasai Bari via Jannat.
BDT 40,000/month from footpaths in the Kasai Bari Tire Market via Jannat and Azmer.
BDT 30,000/month from the footpath in front of the Muktijoddha Market.
BDT 30,000/month from the footpath between Ashkona Railgate and Hajj Camp via Jamai Babu.
BDT 450,000/month from two residential hotels at Babus Salam Mosque Market via Manager Monir (BDT 15,000 daily).
BDT 120,000/month from parking shops near the east side of the railway (Pond bank) via Saju and Rubel.
BDT 315,000/month from the west side of the railway via Shaheen Akter (BDT 10,500 daily).