The Bangladesh government has launched efforts to overturn a reported conditional bail granted to former inspector general of police Benazir Ahmed by a Dubai court, even as authorities acknowledged they have yet to receive official confirmation of his release from custody in the United Arab Emirates.
The development has created uncertainty over one of Bangladesh’s highest-profile anti-corruption cases, with the Home Ministry, Foreign Ministry, Bangladesh Police and the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) all saying they are awaiting formal communication from the UAE authorities before confirming Benazir’s legal status.
Media reports on Sunday claimed Benazir had been released from prison in Dubai last Thursday.
While Bangladesh Police has not officially confirmed the reports, senior officials said they were not ruling out the possibility and were trying to establish contact with Dubai authorities.
The process has been delayed as Sunday was a public holiday in the UAE, according to police sources.
Speaking to journalists in Rajshahi, Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said he had received information that Benazir was granted conditional bail by a Dubai court.
He said the Bangladesh government had already appointed a law firm in the UAE to challenge the order and seek its cancellation.
According to the home minister, the reported bail was granted on the condition that Benazir would not leave the UAE.
He said the government had instructed the appointed legal team to obtain a certified copy of the court order and immediately pursue legal steps to have the bail revoked.
“We hope to be able to cancel the bail and bring her back as soon as possible,” he said.
Foreign Affairs Adviser Humayun Kabir later said the process of bringing Benazir back to Bangladesh had already been initiated, with the Home Ministry leading the effort in coordination with other authorities.
However, he declined to comment on the reported bail, saying he had not yet received the latest official update.
Bangladesh Police and the ACC, meanwhile, maintained that they had not yet received any official notification from Dubai authorities.
Police Headquarters spokesperson AIG Shahadat Hossain said police had no confirmed information regarding Benazir’s release, while ACC Director General Mir Md Zainul Abedin Shibli said the commission had learned of the reports only through the media and would take any legal steps required once official documents were received.
Authorities have also been unable to independently verify the legal basis for the reported release or Benazir’s current whereabouts.
Attempts to obtain a response from Dubai Police and to contact Benazir directly were unsuccessful.
Benazir, who served as inspector general of police between April 2020 and September 2022 after previously leading the Rapid Action Battalion and Dhaka Metropolitan Police, has been at the centre of multiple corruption investigations since leaving office.
He was among seven current and former RAB officials sanctioned by the United States in 2021 over allegations of serious human rights violations.
The ACC filed four corruption cases against Benazir, his wife and two daughters in December 2024 over allegations of acquiring and concealing illegal wealth worth Tk74 crore.
A Bangladeshi court later issued an arrest warrant, and in February 2025 ordered that it be executed through Interpol.
Bangladesh Police subsequently confirmed that Benazir had been arrested in Dubai in connection with the ACC case.
The government’s next move now hinges on whether the reported bail is formally confirmed and whether the Dubai court agrees to revoke it following Bangladesh’s legal challenge.
