Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) has ordered an investigation into an anti-drug operation led by State Minister for Liberation War Affairs Ishraque Hossain, who was filmed brandishing a pistol while his armed bodyguards chased and detained several people in the capital's Gendaria area.
The incident took place on Saturday afternoon near the Dayaganj Gumtighar railway crossing, close to Gendaria railway station.
A video posted on Ishraque's Facebook page quickly went viral, triggering questions about the legality of the operation and the state minister's use of a firearm.
DMP Detective Branch chief Shafiqul Islam confirmed the investigation at a press conference on Sunday.
He said the deputy commissioner of DMP's Wari Division had been assigned to investigate the incident.
Legal action would follow if the investigation found any violations, he said.
The video, titled "Ishraque in Action: Drug Dens Demolished, Dealers Handed Over to Police," shows the state minister stepping out of a vehicle with a pistol in his hand.
He raises the weapon and shouts, "Catch them! Catch them! Catch them!"
Another person nearby is heard threatening, "I'll shoot you right here."
Several armed bodyguards then run towards people standing beside the railway tracks.
One young man pleads, "Sir, I haven't done anything. I'm a poor man, sir."
Ishraque responds, "The police will come. We'll talk after that."
At one point, a bodyguard kicks a young man.
Pavel Sikder, former convener of Dhaka Metropolitan South Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, identified the person who delivered the kick as the state minister's government-appointed bodyguard.
Ishraque was accompanied by two personal bodyguards, Tofazzal Hossain and Lavlu, and a government-appointed bodyguard.
Both personal bodyguards were armed. The government bodyguard was also seen pointing a firearm.
Parts of the video blurred the pistol in Ishraque's hand. Other segments showed the weapon clearly.
Another video showed the detained individuals being handed over to police.
The incident has raised questions about whether a state minister can personally conduct an anti-drug operation while openly carrying a firearm.
It has also prompted scrutiny of the legal status of Ishraque's pistol and his failure to declare it in his election affidavit.
Speaking to Prothom Alo on Saturday night, Ishraque said the weapon was legally licensed.
Asked why he had not disclosed it in the affidavit submitted to the returning officer, he told the vernacular daily that he acquired the firearm after Sharif Osman Hadi was shot on December 12, 2025.
He claimed there had been no opportunity to include it in the affidavit.
Article 25 of the Home Ministry's 2025 firearms policy sets out the conditions governing the carrying and use of licensed firearms.
Subsection (a) permits licensed firearms to be carried or used for self-defence.
However, it prohibits displaying weapons in a manner that causes fear or annoyance to others.
The DMP investigation will examine whether any laws were violated during Saturday's operation.
Police have not yet announced any findings or legal action against the state minister or his bodyguards.
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