A Bangladesh MP who travelled to Kolkata for medical treatment is missing and has most likely been murdered, a senior Bengal police officer told NDTV Wednesday. Anwarul Azim Anar – a member of the ruling Awami League – was last seen at a high-end housing complex in the New Town area.
His phone has been switched off, authorities have said.
Sources said an initial sweep of an apartment in the complex found bloodstains – leading to the speculation he was killed there and his body dismembered before being dumped in nearby areas.
A forensic analysis is expected to shed more light. The police have said it is too early to discuss motives and that the focus, for now, is on locating Mr Anar’s body.
“There was a missing diary and police in Barrackpore (in north suburban Kolkata) set up a team to track him. In the midst of that we got information via the Ministry of External Affairs. Today we received a tip he may have been murdered. Police tracked his last-known location to this flat,” Akhilesh Chaturvedi, an Inspector-General of Police in the Crime Investigation Department told NDTV.
The CID has taken over this investigation, Mr Chaturvedi confirmed.
Mr Anar was last seen on CCTV footage from this apartment complex in a Kolkata suburb.
“We have begun the investigation. A forensic team has been sent to the apartment, which belongs to Sandeep (last name unknown) who works in the Excise Department. He had rented it to an American national,” the top cop said but declined to reveal any further information at this time.
The person who rented the flat has been identified as Akhtar-ul-Jamaan, he said.
“… (only) this much has come out so far. The rest is being investigated and it would not be correct to say anything more at this stage. We are trying our best to resolve this case,” Mr Chaturvedi said.
News of Mr Anar’s disappearance was flagged by his family, who contacted Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Her office spoke to diplomats in Delhi and Kolkata, who alerted the police.
Back in Dhaka, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan called the killing “pre-planned murder”. Police there have made three arrests so far, suggesting Mr Anar’s killing has an international angle.
“It has been confirmed to us this morning by Indian police that he (Anwarul Azim Anar) was murdered. Based on information given to us, our police arrested those suspected to have been involved in the crime. They are being questioned and an investigation is on,” he told the press.
Police in Kolkata, meanwhile, are probing multiple angles.
Anwarul Azim Anar reached Kolkata on May 12 and was staying with a friend, Gopal Biswas. He went missing two days later, after which Mr Biswas filed a police complaint.
