The Assassin Next Door (The Fifth Estate)

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"The Assassin Next Door"
The Fifth Estate episode
The Assassin Next Door poster.jpeg
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Episode no.Season 49
Episode 4
Written by Mark Kelley
Presented by Mark Kelley
Editing byRyan Ferguson
Original air date17 November 2023 (2023-11-17)
Running time42 minutes

"The Assassin Next Door" is the fourth episode of 49th season of Canadian documentary series The Fifth Estate . The documentary was published by the Canada-state affiliated media CBC News. The investigative documentary episode is about on Noor Chowdhury, the assassin of the first President of Bangladesh Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and it focuses on questions that raises about Canada's silence in the case of Noor Chowdhury's staying in Canada.

Contents

Background

The founding father and first president of Bangladesh Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his family members were assassinated on 15 August 1975 in his residence of Dhanmondi 32 by a group of young Bangladesh Army personnel as part of a coup d'état. [1] Minister of Commerce Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad immediately took control of the government and proclaimed himself president. The assassination marked the first direct military intervention in Bangladesh's civilian administration-centric politics. [2] The trial of the assassins was ended on 8 November 1998 ordering the death sentence to fifteen out of the twenty accused of conspiring in the assassination. Many of them were executed [3] [4] and many of them were died of natural causes. [5] [6] Some person are absconding. Noor Chowdhury is one of them who is currently living in Canada. [7]

Description

The documentary reveals how one of the assassins Noor Chowdhury had fled to Canada now residing in a condo in Etobicoke west of Toronto. It explored the circumstances of the Noor Chowdhury case and included interviews with numerous prominent figures including Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the High Commissioner of Bangladesh in Canada Khalilur Rahman, and other individuals involved in the case. According to the documentary, Chowdhury is currently the most wanted criminal in Bangladesh. He was convicted in absentia and sentenced to death for assassinating the country's then president, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, in 1975, and helping to plan the massacre of 21 members of the president's family and household, including his 10-year-old son. [8] He was filmed tending to plants on his balcony but fled when confronted by the journalist outside his residence. The Government of Canada including Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) refused to comment on the documentary about the case. Despite a deportation order issued by IRCC in 2006, Canada has been publicly silent on its reasons for allowing him to stay, driving a wedge between the two long-friendly countries. [8] The documentary also shows the friendship between Bangladesh & Canada in the time when Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Pierre Trudeau were in power. [8]

Cast

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheikh Mujibur Rahman</span> Bangladeshi revolutionary and statesman (1920–1975)

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, popularly known by the honorific prefix Bangabandhu, was a Bangladeshi politician, revolutionary, statesman, activist and diarist. As a politician, Mujib had held continuous positions either as Bangladesh's president or as its prime minister from April 1971 until his assassination in August 1975. Mujib successfully led the Bangladeshi independence movement and restored Bengali sovereignty after over two centuries following the Battle of Plassey in 1757, for which he is honoured as the "Father of the Nation" in Bangladesh who declared independence. In the 2004 BBC opinion poll, Mujib was voted as the Greatest Bengali of all time.

Syed Nazrul Islam was a Bangladeshi politician and a senior leader of the Awami League. During the Bangladesh Liberation War, he was declared as the Vice President of Bangladesh by the Provisional Government. He served as the Acting President in the absence of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad</span> President of Bangladesh in 1975

Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad was a Bangladeshi politician. He was the Minister of Commerce in the third Mujib Rahman ministry under Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and assumed the presidency of Bangladesh after the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on August 15, 1975. He praised the assassins as "sons of the sun" and put cabinet ministers loyal to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in jail. He was himself deposed by another coup less than three months later on November 3, 1975.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indemnity Ordinance, 1975</span> 1975 immunity law in Bangladesh

The Indemnity Ordinance, 1975 was a controversial law enacted by the martial law regime of Bangladesh on 26 September 1975. It provided legal immunity to all persons involved in the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who was killed with most of his family on 15 August 1975. Immunity meant the assassins were immune from any legal action. The surviving family members of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman were unable to file a murder case against the assassins due to this law.

Syed Faruque Rahman was a coup member involved in toppling the Sheikh Mujib regime in Bangladesh. He was convicted and hanged on 28 January 2010 along with co-conspirators Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, A.K.M. Mohiuddin Ahmed, Mohiuddin Ahmed, and Mohammad Bazlul Huda in Dhaka Central Jail, Old Dhaka, for the murder of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding father and the first president of Bangladesh. Syed Faruque Rahman and his close ally Khondaker Abdur Rashid were the chief organisers of the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on 15 August 1975. He was 2IC of the 1st Bengal Lancers Regiment of the Bangladesh Army who led a group of junior army officers in order to overthrew the regime of Sheikh Mujib and install Khondaker Mushtaque Ahmed as president of Bangladesh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman</span> 1975 murder in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the first president of Bangladesh, was assassinated along with most of his family members during the early hours of 15 August 1975 by a group of Bangladesh Army personnel who invaded his residence as part of a coup d'état. The Minister of Commerce, Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad, immediately took control and proclaimed himself head of an interim government from 15 August to 6 November 1975; he was in turn succeeded by Chief Justice Abu Sayem. The assassination marked the first direct military intervention in Bangladesh's civilian administration. Lawrence Lifschultz characterized this incident as an outcome of the Cold War between the United States-influenced Pakistan and the Soviet Union-influenced India. 15 August is annually observed as National Mourning Day, a commemorative day in Bangladesh.

Jail Killing Day is observed by the Awami League (AL) of Bangladesh and many other political organisations on 3 November every year. It commemorates the killing of four Awami League and national leaders: former vice-president Syed Nazrul Islam, former prime minister Tajuddin Ahmed and Captain (Rtd.) Mansur Ali, and former home minister A H M Quamruzzaman on this date in 1975.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheikh Jamal</span> Bangladeshi army officer (1954–1975)

Sheikh Jamal was the second son of Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the first president of Bangladesh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib</span> First Lady of Bangladesh and the wife of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman

Begum Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib, commonly known as Begum Mujib; and also known by her nickname Renu, was the wife of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founder and the first President of Bangladesh. She is the mother of Sheikh Hasina, the leader of the Awami League from 2009-2024. She was killed along with her husband, brother-in-law, 3 sons and 2 daughters-in-law.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheikh Rehana</span> Bangladeshi politician

Sheikh Rehana Siddiq is a Bangladesh Awami League politician. She is the younger sister of the former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the daughter of the first President of Bangladesh Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. She is also the mother of Tulip Siddiq, a British Labour Party politician and elected Member of Parliament and City Minister.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tungipara Sheikh family</span> Bangladeshi political family

The Tungipara Sheikh family of Tungipara is one of the two most prominent Bangladeshi political families, other being the Zia family. The family primarily consists of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Sheikh Hasina, Sheikh Rehana and their relatives. Their political involvement has traditionally revolved around the Bangladesh Awami League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheikh Russel</span> Youngest child of autocrat Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (1964–1975)

Sheikh Russel was the youngest child of autocrat Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the first President of Bangladesh. Russel and most of his direct family were killed in their home during the 1975 military coup.

Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan was a Bangladeshi army officer who was convicted for the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding father and then President of Bangladesh. On 28 January 2010, Rahman was hanged along with Syed Faruque Rahman, A.K.M. Mohiuddin Ahmed, Mohiuddin Ahmed, and Mohammad Bazlul Huda in Old Dhaka Central Jail.

S.H.M.B Noor Chowdhury is a Bangladesh army officer who was convicted for the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, president of Bangladesh, and for involvement in the murder of four national leaders in the Jail Killing. As of 2017, he was a fugitive, residing in Canada. The Canadian government has refused to extradite him, because he faces the death penalty in Bangladesh.

Mohammad Bazlul Huda was a Bangladeshi Army officer and freedom fighter who was convicted of the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, founding president of Bangladesh. On 28 January 2010, Bazlul was executed along with Syed Faruque Rahman, Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, Mohiuddin Ahmed, and A.K.M. Mohiuddin Ahmed in Old Dhaka Central Jail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bangabandhu Memorial Museum</span> Museum in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Bangabandhu Memorial Museum, also known as Bangabandhu Bhaban or Dhanmondi 32, located in Dhanmondi, Dhaka, Bangladesh, was the personal residence of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who was also called Bangabandhu, the founder and president of Bangladesh. Mujib was assassinated with most members of his family in this residence. The museum was listed as a national heritage site in 2009 by RAJUK and was largely damaged in 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">15 August 1975 Bangladeshi coup d'état</span> First military coup in Bangladesh

The military coup in Bangladesh on August 15 of 1975 was launched by mid-ranking army officers in order to assassinate founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, whose administration post-independence grew corrupt and reportedly authoritarian until he established a one-party state-based government led by the socialist party Bangladesh Krishak Sramik Awami League. Mujib, along with his resident family members, were killed during the coup but was survived by his two then-expat daughters, one of them being future prime minister Sheikh Hasina. The officers were led by Capt. Abdul Majed, Maj. Syed Faruque Rahman, Maj. Khandaker Abdur Rashid and Maj. Shariful Haque Dalim.

Mohiuddin Ahmed was a Bangladesh Army officer who was convicted of the Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. On 28 January 2010, Ahmed was hanged along with Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, A.K.M. Mohiuddin Ahmed, Syed Farooq Rahman, and Mohammad Bazlul Huda at Old Dhaka Central Jail.

Abdul Majed was a Bangladeshi military officer who was convicted for his role in the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding president of Bangladesh.

References

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  2. কল্লোল, কাদির (15 August 2015). প্রথম অভ্যুত্থান যেভাবে পাল্টে দেয় বাংলাদেশের গতিপথ. বিবিসি বাংলা (in Bengali). Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  3. Ahmed, Anis (27 January 2010). "Bangladesh Hangs Killers of Independence Leader Mujib". Reuters.
  4. "Bangladesh executes killer of founding president". BBC News. 12 April 2020.
  5. "Mujib murder case appeals verdict today". New Age. Dhaka. Archived from the original on 2 August 2010.
  6. 6 killers still out of reach Archived 21 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  7. Charlie Gillis (15 February 2011). "The assassin among us – Nur Chowdhury faces execution for killing Bangladesh's president. That's why he's safe in Canada". Maclean's .
  8. 1 2 3 "The assassin next door". CBC News. 21 November 2023.