Former MP Abul Hasanat's son Moyeenuddin Abdullah arrested in Dhaka

Police detectives detain the former FBCCI member in Dhaka's Gulshan, but the charges against him were not immediately disclosed

Police detectives have arrested Serniabat Moyeenuddin Abdullah, the son of former Barishal-1 MP and Sheikh Hasina's cousin Abul Hasanat Abdullah, in Dhaka.

He was apprehended in the capital's Gulshan-2 early on Saturday morning, according to a statement issued by the Detective Branch of Dhaka Metropolitan Police.

“Moyeenuddin is implicated in cases filed under various sections of the Penal Code, as well as the Explosive Substances Act,” said Deputy Commissioner Talebur Rahman, the agency's spokesman.

However, the agency did not specify the charges on which he was arrested.

Moyeenuddin is a former director of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry. His brother Serniabat Sadiq Abdullah had also served as mayor of Barishal city from 2018-2023.

After the student-led mass uprising toppled the Awami League government, Moyeenuddin went to Barishal on Aug 14. He returned to Dhaka after visiting his burnt family home and his mother’s grave.

He was accompanied by Muaaz Ariff, son of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Advisor AF Hassan Ariff.

Agitated protesters set fire to the residence of Sadiq, the general secretary of Barishal city Awami League, upon the collapse of the Sheikh Hasina administration on Aug 5.

Later, the bodies of three people, including Ward-19 councillor Gazi Naimul Hossain Litu, were recovered from the house.

The Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit has seized the bank accounts of seven people, including Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s nephew Abul Hasanat, following the changeover in power.

The other members of the family whose bank accounts have been frozen are Hasanat's late wife Shahan Ara Abdullah, their three sons Sadiq, Moyeenuddin and Ashiq Abdullah, Sadiq's wife Lipi Abdullah and Firoza Sultana.