Probe finds no clue 3 days after PM’s red phone was disconnected

Authorities race to identify who cut copper cable feeding key government phones, yet the trail goes cold

The police have failed to solve the mystery behind the cutting of the secure red telephone line of the Prime Minister’s Office at the Secretariat, the administrative heart of Bangladesh, three days after the incident came to light.

Several agencies have joined the investigation, but no breakthrough has emerged.

Dhaka Metropolitan Police Detective Branch chief, Additional Commissioner Shafiqul Islam, said on Thursday: "We are carrying out a shadow investigation. Other agencies are also investigating. There has been no progress worth reporting so far.”

The government's seven-day Eid ul-Azha holiday began on May 25. When staff returned to the secretariat on Monday after the break, they found the red telephone had no connection.

The matter was reported to the officer in charge and Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited (BTCL) technicians arrived and restored the line within a few hours.

A BTCL official holding the rank of joint secretary told bdnews24.com that the red telephone allowed the prime minister to make direct calls to anywhere in the world instantly.

BTCL official Mohammad Nazid Haidar filed a general diary at Shahbag Police Station on Monday in connection with the incident.

According to the general diary lodged by the state telecommunications body, copper telecommunication cables ran from the old building-1 to the new building-1 within the Secretariat premises.

These lines maintained critical communication channels, keeping the red telephones at the Prime Minister’s Office, the Cabinet Division, and the Ministry of Public Administration operational alongside other crucial lines.

The complaint mentioned that “miscreants” cut the copper cables on the building rooftop, disrupting the highly secure telephone lines.

Shahbagh Police chief Moniruzzaman Khan told bdnews24.com on Thursday, “Following the GD over the incident, government agencies are investigating. We are also looking into it.”

Md Mahmudul Kabir, DMP Deputy Commissioner responsible for Secretariat security, said: “We, along with other agencies, are working to unravel the mystery. We will inform you in due course, but the situation has not yet reached that stage.”