Rashed Khan alleges torture at DMP cybercrime unit in 2018

Prime Minister's Political Assistant Rashed Khan has alleged that he was tortured at the Dhaka Metropolitan Police's (DMP) Cyber Crime Unit during the 2018 quota reform movement by former Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Ishtiaq Ahmed.

"I was tortured for around 30 minutes inside the Cyber Crime Unit with my hands and eyes tied and my mouth covered with a gamcha (towel) so I could not speak," Rashed told journalists today after meeting Chief Prosecutor Aminul Islam at the International Crimes Tribunal to inquire about the progress of an investigation into his complaint.

Rashed had filed the complaint over the alleged torture during the quota reform movement in 2018 and visited the tribunal on 30 April 2025 regarding the matter. 

According to the complaint, Ishtiaq Ahmed allegedly tortured Rashed in his office at the DMP Cyber Crime Unit on 1 July 2018 after he was arrested from Bhashantek while leading the quota reform movement. 

Rashed said he was taken first to the DB office on Minto Road and then to the Cyber Crime Unit, where police showed him arrested in a case over allegedly making derogatory remarks about then prime minister Sheikh Hasina, which he said he did not know about.

He alleged that he was kept on 15-day remand and subjected to inhumane torture, claiming Ishtiaq could not have carried it out without Sheikh Hasina's instructions. Rashed further alleged that Ishtiaq had turned his DMP office into a "torture cell" under her direct instructions.

Rashed linked Ishtiaq to his father, former tribunal judge Justice Abu Ahmed Jamadar, alleging that Jamadar was close to Sheikh Hasina and had been involved in the proceedings in the Zia Orphanage Trust corruption case against BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia. 

He alleged that the family's ties to Sheikh Hasina influenced Ishtiaq's actions against leaders of the 2018 quota reform movement and participants in the 2024 quota reform movement and mass uprising. 

"I  came to the International Crimes Tribunal seeking justice for the torture I suffered," Rashed said, adding that the chief prosecutor had informed him that the investigation was ongoing and assured him that justice would be ensured if the allegations were established.

Ishtiaq Ahmed was arrested in Rangamati in April 2025 and later sent to jail by the tribunal after being produced before it. 

Chief Prosecutor Aminul Islam said the prosecution had conducted an investigation and briefed Rashed on its progress.