Although Dhallywood star Zayed Khan has not been that active in movies recently, news about him keep making the rounds on social media.
Recently, various memes about the actor have appeared on Facebook and other platforms regarding his visit to the US.
Amid this, Zayed Khan suddenly became the talk of the town on the platform on Friday.
Multiple Bangladeshi media outlets published news that two organizations named the "Institute of Public Policy and Diplomacy Research" and "Humanitarian Focus Foundation" have jointly awarded 40 people from all over the world, who work for harmony, peace and sustainable development in their respective places, with the "The Humanitarian Leadership Award.” Zayed Khan is one of the recipients to have received this honour.
The news was shared by the actor himself from his verified Facebook page.
He said the organization selected him for his humanitarian activities during the Covid-19 pandemic, when he worked for the betterment of the film industry with food aid for struggling artists.
The award was apparently presented on Thursday at a special reception in the Delegates Dining Room at United Nations (UN) headquarters.
News sites also mentioned that the award was given by the United Nations.
At the same time, the actor was appointed as the Global Peace Ambassador, their reports said.
After the award ceremony, a dinner was organized in which only the invitees from the United Nations were present.
Apart from the 40 awardees, the ambassadors of different countries in the world were present at the event.
However, amid widespread discussion, Blitz, a portal dealing with contemporary international issues, began to scrutinize the matter.
They also contacted the United Nations authorities to inquire about the matter.
Blitz sent an email to the United Nations asking if it has conferred an award to Zayed Khan and if ‘Institute of Public Policy and Diplomacy Research' is its affiliated organization.
Meanwhile, it is learnt that a group of professionals purchased a domain on September 20, 2022 in the name of the organization.
Following the commencement of its journey in 2022, ‘Institute of Public Policy and Diplomacy Research' has given “Life Time Award” to a large number of individuals, including US President Joe Biden.
However, the White House has never acknowledged or accepted the award from this organization.
According to the website of ‘Institute of Public Policy and Diplomacy Research', the office of the organization is located at 733 3rd Avenue, New York, 11017, phone number +1-646-790 5926, while it claims to have offices in Switzerland and Luxembourg.
Surprisingly, it has not mentioned details of its office in Switzerland and Luxembourg, except for CH-1002, VD, Switzerland and L – 9746 Drauffelt, Luxembourg.
Although it purchased its domain only in 2022, this dubious entity claims to be founded in 2017, with Carlos Manuel Perez Gonzales as president, Dr Andrise Bass as founder, and Frédérick Ordines as international director.
Blitz in its report also mentioned that there are plenty of such organizations in the United States mostly run by African Americans, which offer such awards to various individuals in exchange for cash.
It further said: “Why in the world an organization based in the United States would organize an event by hiring a hall at the United Nations office in New York City just to give the award to an individual from Bangladesh?”