Gaibandha Ram idol organiser on 4-day remand

A Dhaka court on Monday granted a four-day remand for Haridas Chandra Tarani Das, the organizer behind the construction of a Ram idol in Palashbari Upazila of Gaibandha. 

The court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Md. Ripon Hossain issued this order after the investigating officer and inspector of Detective Branch (DB) Rakibul Huda produced the accused before the court and filed an application seeking a seven-day remand.

The investigating officer said that five bank accounts and four mobile financial service (MFS) accounts belonging to Haridas were analyzed. Records show that between January 1, 2020, and June 30, 2026, a total of 93,532,451 taka was deposited into these accounts, while 93,565,528 taka was withdrawn in various transactions. 

The officer alleged that, under the guise of constructing a Ram idol, Haridas was involved in hundi (illegal money transfer) operations involving multiple countries. The officer stated that a seven-day remand is required for further information.

Earlier, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) unit of police arrested Haridas from his residence in Gaibandha on Sunday.

Sarwar Alam Khan, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Palashbari Police Station, said Haridas was arrested in connection with a money laundering case filed at Uttara West Police Station in Dhaka.

The case had since been transferred to the CID's Crime Division.

Haridas became widely known in Palashbari for organising the construction of the 81-foot Ram idol at the Radha Gobinda Temple.

On June 12, the temple organisers announced at a press briefing that they had decided to suspend construction of the idol in order to "maintain communal harmony."