Police on Friday arrested former BNP leader and current Jamaat figure Maj (retd) Akhtaruzzaman after Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) authorities filed a case against him over an altercation with airport officials a day earlier.
"Police officers from the detective branch arrested him today. He was arrested over a case filed at the Airport Police Station," Dhaka Metropolitan Police Spokesman Md Akter Hossain told Daily Waadaa.
Akhtaruzzaman was expelled from the BNP in 2022 following multiple previous suspensions for breaching party discipline and making controversial remarks. He later joined Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami in December 2025.
In a video circulated on social media shortly before his arrest, Akhtaruzzaman addressed the people saying, “I am being arrested and taken away by the DB police at this moment. Pray for me so that I can become a martyr for the people of the country and their welfare. I will remain committed to the people’s struggle for life, and I will sacrifice this life.”
On Friday morning, Shahriar Alam Sajib, a security officer at HSIA, had filed the case at the Airport Police Station, the station’s investigating officer confirmed.
Akhtaruzzaman was charged with obstructing government duties, creating disorder at the airport and assaulting a security official.
According to the First Information Report (FIR), the incident took place around 10:40am on Thursday after passengers of a Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight (BG-338) arriving from Madina faced a shortage of trolleys and delays in collecting their baggage at No 8 baggage belt amid heavy passenger pressure, UNB reported.
Airport Executive Director Group Captain SM Ragib Samad then went to the spot to bring the situation under control following a request from Dhaka-5 MP Mohammad Kamal Hossain.
The FIR said while Ragib Samad was trying to calm the situation, Akhtaruzzaman allegedly moved towards him aggressively, abused him and threatened to beat him and throw him out of the airport by the neck.
He also allegedly made offensive remarks about the civil aviation and tourism minister.
The situation worsened when protocol assistants accompanying Akhtaruzzaman started recording videos on mobile phones in the airport's restricted Key Point Installation (KPI) area.
When security supervisor Warrant Officer Mohammad Kamal Uddin asked them to stop recording, Akhtaruzzaman allegedly abused him and physically assaulted him.
The FIR further alleged that Akhtaruzzaman threw bottles of holy Zamzam water collected by other passengers from their trolleys, allegedly causing damage, and behaved aggressively towards a representative of Biman Bangladesh Airlines.
Police said they will collect CCTV footage, statements from eyewitnesses and other evidence as part of the investigation and take legal action based on the findings.