A man travelling to India for medical treatment has allegedly been robbed of all his money and his phone by Bangladeshi customs officials at the Burimari land port in Lalmonirhat.
The diabetic man was then sent off across the border to Chengrabandha port, where he was stranded for two days.
On Friday, Mamunur Rashid Chowdhury, 48, a resident of Dhaka's Ibrahimpur, first contacted the Dhaka Tribune over phone from Chengrabandha saying he was marooned there without any cash.
As of Saturday, he had managed to come back to the country but had not yet recovered his money.
Mamun said that he arrived at Burimari land port on Thursday to go to India for medical treatment.
At Burimari, he changed Bangladeshi Taka into Indian currency, purchasing Rs2,27,920, and completed all formalities at the immigration. As he was preparing to cross the border, he was taken aside by Customs Intelligence Inspector Ebadat Ali.
Ebadat Ali allegedly detained him in the office of Revenue Officer Mujibur Rahman and took away the rupees and his smart phone.
Around 6pm, he was made to sign a release saying he had received his money. Then customs intelligence officers gave him Tk500 and escorted him across the border.
When this correspondent spoke to him on Friday over phone, Mamun broke down in tears saying he was feeling ill and needed medical attention.
On Saturday morning, at Burimari, he told our correspondent that Ebadat Ali had threatened him with a jail sentence.
“I am diabetic and I have thyroid problems. I was going to Bengaluru for treatment, but without the money I could not travel and had to come back,” he said.
“I am trying to contact my family now,” he said.
Asked about the allegations, Inspector Ebadat Ali denied any wrongdoing.
He said: “Mamunur Rashid Chowdhury was called into the customs office because of his suspicious behaviour.
“He was searched and it was found that the money he had was less than $5,000 in value. So we spoke to higher authorities and let him go.”
He refused to reply when asked why the man was detained till 6pm from the morning.
Revenue Officer Mujibur Rahman would not receive calls to his cell phone and did not reply to text messages.
Burimari Land Port Customs Assistant Commissioner Rizvi Ahmed said: “We will investigate the matter of Inspector Ebadat Ali and Revenue Officer Mujibur Rahman and take necessary action.”
The port's Immigration Police In-charge SI Anwar Hossain said local police authorities had been informed of Mamun's missing money.
Patgram police station Officer-in-Charge Abani Shankar Kar said he had heard of the incident.
“Legal action will be taken if the victim lodges a complaint,” he said.
Tuesday, July 21, 2026
