Home
+
Published : 06 Sep 2025, 03:21 PM
A Dhaka court has sent Salim Prodhan, a controversial businessman previously jailed in connection with the 2019 casino scandal, and eight others to jail in a narcotics case.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Minhazur Rahman on Saturday also sent to jail custody Rakibul Islam Rafi, Sadikul Islam Sumon, Toufikul Islam, Rifat Hasan, Robiul Hasan, Minhazur Rahman Tajbir, Mehedi Hasan, and Saimum Islam.
They were detained around 2:30am on Saturday from Nexus Cafe Palace, a restaurant in Gulshan’s Baridhara.
Police claimed to have recovered 6.7kg of shisha from the venue. Later, a Gulshan Police Station sub-inspector filed a case against them under the Narcotics Control Act.
On Saturday, the investigation officer produced them before the court and sought an order to keep them in jail.
The court’s prosecution wing SI Moktar Hossain said, “Defence lawyers applied for bail but sought a hearing on Monday. The court sent them to prison and fixed Monday for the bail hearing.”
Salim is chairman of Prodhan Group, under which a company called P24 Gaming had openly advertised online gambling operations on its website.
He first rose to prominence during the anti-casino drive in 2019, when he was detained at Dhaka’s Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport while attempting to travel to Thailand.
Subsequent raids by the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) on his homes and offices in Gulshan and Banani uncovered Tk 2.9 million in cash, large quantities of foreign liquor, and currencies from several countries. Two deer hides were also found, leading a mobile court to sentence him immediately to six months’ imprisonment under the Wildlife Conservation Act.
The following day, the RAB filed two further cases against him under the Narcotics Control Act and the Money Laundering Prevention Act. The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) later brought charges of amassing wealth beyond known sources of income and money laundering, for which he was sentenced to eight years in prison.
After spending four years in jail, he was released on bail in October 2023.
In 2023, Salim attempted to return to public life by submitting nomination papers to contest the Rupganj Upazila Parishad chairman election. However, his candidacy was cancelled by election officials after scrutiny, due to his criminal conviction.
In June 2025, Salim surfaced in the political arena again, this time being appointed as chief advisor of the newly launched Bangladesh Republic Party.
