Ctg businessman consumes poison on Facebook Live after raising extortion allegations

A businessman allegedly attempted suicide after alleging extortion and harassment by several local individuals during a Facebook Live in Bakshirhat area of Chattogram.

The businessman, Swapan Ghosh, owner of "Swapan Ghosh & Sons" in Ward No 35 of the city, consumed poison during the live broadcast from his home early yesterday (19 June). Locals rescued him and took him to Chattogram Medical College Hospital, where he is currently undergoing treatment.

Confirming the matter, Chattogram Medical College Hospital police outpost Sub-Inspector Nurul Alam Ashik told The Business Standard that Swapan consumed poison during the Facebook Live and was later admitted to the hospital.

During the broadcast, Swapan accused three local residents, Shamsher Ali, Ayub Ali and Shahadat Ali of extortion.

He claimed that after the political changeover on 5 August 2024, he was asked to pay money in the name of rent. When he refused, he was implicated in a case over alleged links to the now-banned Awami League and spent five months in prison.

Swapan also alleged that the shop's actual owner is a woman named Nur Nahar Begum. According to him, while he was in prison, his wife was made to sign a rental agreement for the shop.

Police said no complaint had been filed by his family. Family members told police that he had consumed cockroach poison and suggested that imprisonment and various business-related complications had left him mentally distressed.

Local sources said Swapan had been associated with Jubo League politics in the area. Police records show he was arrested and sent to court as a suspect in a Kotwali Police Station case.

Responding to the allegations, Kotwali Police Station Investigation Officer Md Iqbal Hossain told TBS that Swapan had been sent to jail through a court order as a suspect in the case. He said that if Swapan had no political affiliation, he had the opportunity to prove that in court.

Iqbal said the individuals named in the Facebook Live are locally known as BNP supporters and that Swapan believes they were responsible for including his name in the case. He added that police would take legal action if the family filed a complaint regarding the extortion allegations.

The accused individuals could not be reached for comment immediately. 

However, after the incident, they filed a general diary with Kotwali Police Station, claiming the allegations were false and intended to harass them.