Major (retd.) Mozzaffar Hossain arrested after 45 years in Ziaur Rahman assassination case

The Detective Branch (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police has arrested Major (retd.) Mozzaffar Hossain, one of the masterminds behind the assassination of former president Ziaur Rahman, after nearly 45 years on the run.

The DB detained him late Wednesday night (July 15) from the Banani DOHS area in the capital. After completion of the necessary legal procedures, he was handed over to the Bangladesh Army for the court-martial process.

On the early morning of May 30, 1981, a group of army officers carried out an attack on Chattogram Circuit House, killing then-president Ziaur Rahman. Major Mozzaffar Hossain and Captain Mosleh Uddin were among the military officers accused of directly taking part in the assassination.

According to various historical accounts and case-related documents, Major Mozzaffar Hossain first identified President Ziaur Rahman and allegedly fired directly at him. After confirming the president’s death, he reportedly informed Major General Abul Manzur, then GOC of the 24 Infantry Division at Chattogram Cantonment, over the telephone, saying: “The President has been killed.”

Following the assassination, the situation was brought under control through a military operation, during which Major General Abul Manzur and several others were arrested. Manzur was later killed. Captain Mosleh Uddin was arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment. However, Major Mozzaffar Hossain and Major S.M. Khaled managed to escape at the time.

Sources involved in the investigation said Major Mozzaffar Hossain spent a long period in hiding in India. He reportedly stayed there between 1997 and 1998. Later, he allegedly used aliases and moved between different locations after crossing the border.

After remaining at large for nearly 45 years, Major Mozzaffar Hossain was finally arrested by the Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Detective Branch. His arrest marks a new development in one of the country’s most high-profile political assassination cases, which has remained unresolved for decades.

Further legal action against him will now be taken through the military’s own judicial process.