Passports of ex-Army Chief Aziz’s 2 brothers cancelled

Bangladesh Passport

The Immigration and Passport Department has cancelled the passports of Haris Ahmed and Tofayel Ahmed Joseph, brothers of former Army Chief Aziz Ahmed, after their national ID cards were invalidated over forgery allegations.

“Their passports were cancelled on September 25, the day after their NIDs were revoked by the Election Commission,” Selina Banu Additional Director General of the department, said on Monday.

According to the cancellation order, the brothers obtained passports using false information, which violated Section 7(2)(b) of the Bangladesh Passport Order, 1973.

Haris and Joseph changed their names and their parents' names and had obtained passports with validity until 2030.

Haris, using the name Mohammad Hasan, had a passport issued on Sept 20 of 2020, with a birth date of Jun 6, 1966. The passport is set to expire on Sept 13, 2030.

Similarly, Joseph, using the name Tanvir Ahmed Tanzil, had his passport issued on Sept 3, 2020, with a birth date of Aug 23 of 1967.

In his fake passport, Haris listed his father’s name as Solaiman Sarker and his mother's name as Rahela Begum, with a permanent address in Dhaka’s Nurjahan Road.

On Joseph’s passport, although he used the same father’s name as Solaiman, he listed his mother’s name as Fatema Begum, with address- in a flat at Mirpur DOHS. 

In fact, their father’s name is Abdul Wadud and their mother’s name is Renuja Begum, who once applied for Joseph’s sentence remission using her real name.

According to a report from the daily Prothom Alo, Haris obtained his NID in 2014 under the fake name and later changed the photo in 2019.

Meanwhile, Joseph had two NIDs, one under his real name and another with fake identity.

It has been learnt that both brothers are currently residing abroad. - Special Correspondent