Asaduzzaman Noor arrested in Bailey Road

He is accused in a case linked to the Anti-discrimination Student Movement

Former culture minister and popular actor Asaduzzaman Noor has been arrested in Dhaka.

Detective Police detained him at 11pm on Sunday from his residence in the Nawratan Colony on Bailey Road.

Noor is an accused in a case filed at Mirpur Police Station during the Anti-discrimination Student Movement, said Muhammad Talebur Rahman, deputy commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police.

Noor was elected as a member of parliament for the fifth time in the general elections this year from the Nilphamari-2 constituency.

He first entered the parliament from this constituency in 2001 on an Awami League ticket.

After winning his seat in the 10th parliamentary elections on Jan 5, 2014, he served as culture minister.

He was born on Oct 31, 1946, in Nilphamari district.

While studying at Dhaka University, he was actively involved in leftist politics.

Later, he focused entirely on the theatre movement.

Although he was involved in student politics with the Chhatra Union, he joined the Awami League in the 1990s.

After Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled to India on Aug 5, an interim government was formed three days later.

Since then, top Awami League leaders, including ministers and state ministers, as well as influential MPs, are being arrested one by one.

Among those arrested are former law minister Anisul Haq, former social welfare minister Dipu Moni, former ICT Minister Zunaid Ahmed Palak, and former advisors Salman F Rahman and Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury.

On Saturday night, former public administration minister Farhad Hossain was also arrested in Dhaka’s New Eskaton.

At least 26 individuals, including former ministers, MPs, and senior leaders, are currently in custody.

On the same night of Noor’s arrest, Mahbub Ali, former state minister for civil aviation and tourism, was also detained in Dhaka.

Ali, who won the Habiganj-4 seat in the 10th and 11th parliamentary elections, lost to independent candidate Syed Sayedul Haque Sumon in January's elections.