Published : 29 Oct 2026, 11:35 PM
Updated : 29 Oct 2026, 11:35 PM
A letter from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has thrown Purbachal Club in Narayanganj’s Rupganj into uncertainty, raising questions about who can reshape its leadership and arrange its next election.
The letter asks the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms (RJSC) to form a 10-member ad hoc committee to run the club and organise an election under its constitution. The committee has called an extraordinary general meeting for Nov 14.
But Showkat Aziz Russell, club president since a leadership change after the 2024 mass uprising, has questioned the letter’s legal validity and jurisdiction.
Dated Oct 14, it was sent by Md Saiful Islam, private secretary to Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary ABM Abdus Sattar.
It names BNP lawmaker Mustafizur Rahman Bhuiyan, MP for Narayanganj-1, as convenor and Rupganj Upazila administrator (UNO) SM Abdullah Bin Shafique as member-secretary.
BNP lawmaker AKM Fazlul Haque Milon, MP for Gazipur-5, is an advisor. Other members include BNP MP Md Abul Kalam of Cumilla-9, Attorney General Ruhul Quddus Kazal and five club members.
Several RJSC officials told bdnews24.com they had not seen the letter, saying such correspondence would not normally come from the PMO.
Registrar Ahmed Ullah said, “I have been performing additional duties for about a week. I haven’t seen the letter. It hasn’t come to my attention or appeared in my dak file.”
Additional Registrar Md Nur-e-Alam said, “I can’t say exactly; I’ll have to see. Has the PMO sent us a letter? What does it say?”
Saiful asked bdnews24.com to send questions by WhatsApp but did not reply. Principal Secretary Sattar did not answer calls or messages.
What Prompted the Move?
After Sheikh Hasina’s government fell on Aug 5, 2024, several executive committee posts at Purbachal Club became vacant.
Russell was named president that October. The Amber Group chairman is the son of late Partex Group founder MA Hashem.
In January 2025, the club co-opted Bhuiyan as executive president and Milon as chief advisor. Both had previously held senior club roles.
Russell Questions Authority
Unable to reach Russell directly, bdnews24.com reviewed a Facebook statement he issued to club members. He said the executive committee should seek legal advice before deciding how to proceed.
“I believe the executive committee should obtain proper legal advice to verify the legal validity and jurisdiction of the matter,” he wrote.
“After reviewing the legal status of the letter received, the responsibility for determining the next steps rests with the executive committee.”
Russell said the club had about 918 members when he took office and that the number had barely changed. Membership costs Tk 2.5 million. He alleged that various quarters repeatedly pressured him to offer memberships at nominal prices or for free.
“I want to state unequivocally that not a single new member was admitted during my presidency,” he wrote.
He did not identify those who allegedly applied pressure. He said membership records could be formally audited and responsibility would pass to the next committee, if its legal status was established.
A day before the letter, a Dhaka special judge’s court sentenced Russell, his brother Ashfaq Aziz Rubel and six others to seven years in prison in a Purbachal plot corruption case.
Election Still Unclear
Abdullah Bin Shafique said the committee had called the Nov 14 meeting to discuss the election. “An ad hoc committee is formed for an election. On the 14th, we will decide what can or cannot be done, after discussing it with the members,” he said.
Milon said the committee had not yet met, prompting the meeting. Bhuiyan and Attorney General Kazal did not respond to requests for comment.
