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Published : 04 Jan 2026, 09:19 PM
The Inquiry Commission for Enforced Disappearance has found evidence that incidents during the Awami League government were carried out under directives from the highest levels of the administration.
Citing 1,569 complaints of disappearances, the commission concluded these acts were “politically motivated crimes”.
The commission handed over the final report to Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus at the State Guest House Jamuna on Sunday, according to a media statement.
Retired Justice Moinul Islam Chowdhury, chief of the commission, and its members were present while presenting the report to Yunus.
The members included retired Additional High Court Judge Md Farid Ahmed Shibli, human rights activist Mohammad Nur Khan, BRAC University teacher Nabila Idris, and human rights activist Sajjad Hossain.
The commission classified 1,569 out of 1,913 complaints as enforced disappearances. Of the confirmed cases, 287 complaints were considered under the “Missing and Dead” category.
Nabila said the number of enforced disappearances could range between 4,000 and 6,000, with many filing new complaints.
A disappearance case could lead to many other victims of the crime, she said, adding that many people were unaware about the commission’s existence or had left the country.
“There are many others whom we reached out to, but they refused to speak on record,” said Nabila.
About 75 percent of enforced disappearance survivors were Jamaat-e-Islami and Islami Chhatra Shibir activists, followed by 22 percent of survivors belonging to the BNP and its affiliated organisations.
Of the enforced disappearance victims who never returned, the commission report said, 68 percent were from the BNP and its associated organisations while 22 percent belonged to Jamaat-e-Islami and Islami Chhatra Shibir.
The investigation also uncovered proof of the direct involvement of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, her defence and security advisor Tarique Ahmed Siddique, and former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal in the enforced disappearances of high-profile individuals.
High-profile cases include BNP leaders Ilias Ali, Salahuddin Ahmed, and Chowdhury Alam; Jamaat leaders retired brigadier general Abdullahil Amaan Azmi and Mir Ahmed Bin Quasem; Hummam Quader Chowdhury, son of war crimes convict Salauddin Quader Chowdhury; and former ambassador Maruf Zaman.
The commission members said the former premier herself ordered many enforced disappearances. The probe also found proof that many enforced disappearance victims were transferred to India without any legal process.
Yunus thanked the commission for their efforts, hailing the commission for carrying out a historic task.
“Those who went through these brutal events, and you -- by speaking with them -- have witnessed these atrocities,” said Yunus.
He sought recommendations and future courses of action to prevent such an incident from recurring.
The chief advisor also requested the commission to map detention facilities such as “Ayna Ghor” and the locations where extrajudicial killings and the disposal of bodies took place.
The commission said the highest number of killings and body disposals occurred in the Baleshwar River in Barishal. Hundreds of victims of enforced disappearance were killed and their bodies were dumped into the river.
Evidence was also found about the disposal of bodies in the Buriganga River and in Munshiganj as well.
