Ahmed Tabrez Shams Chowdhury
Ahmed Tabrez Shams Chowdhury | |
|---|---|
| Born | 30 June 1967 Muksudpur, East Pakistan, Pakistan |
| Allegiance |  Bangladesh |
Branch |  Bangladesh Army |
Service years | 1987 – 2024 |
Rank | Lieutenant General |
| Service number | BA - 3243 |
| Unit | East Bengal Regiment |
| Commands | |
| Awards | Senabahini Padak (SBP) Bishishto Seba Padak (BSP) Independence Day Award |
Ahmed Tabrez Shams Chowdhury [a] is a retired lieutenant general of the Bangladesh Army and served as quartermaster general (QMG) of the Bangladesh Army in Army Headquarters. Before that he was general officer commanding of Army Training and Doctrine Command. Prior to that, he was director general of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence.[1] He is the former general officer commanding (GOC) of the 10th Infantry Division and area commander, Cox’s Bazar Area and 33rd Infantry Division and area commander, Cumilla Area.[2]
Career
Chowdhury had served as the area commander of Cumilla Area and general officer commanding of the 33rd Infantry Division from 2018 to 2020.[3][4] In October 2018, Chowdhury was the chief guest at the Bangladesh Army volleyball tournament held in Comilla Cantonment.[5]
After Cumilla,[6] he was appointed as the general officer commanding of the 10th Infantry Division and area commander, Cox’s Bazar Area, Ramu Cantonment.[6] On 3 December 2020, he received General Aziz Ahmed, chief of army staff, at Ramu Cantonment, who had come to observe the flag-raising ceremony of four units at the newly established Ramu Cantonment.[2] The four units were the Bangladesh Army Station Headquarters at Ramu, Combined Military Hospital (Ramu), 10th Field Intelligence Unit, and Static Signal Company.[7]
On 5 July 2021, Chowdhury was appointed the director general of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence.[8] The former director general of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence, Md Saiful Alam, was appointed the quarter master general of the Bangladesh Army.[6] During his term at the DGFI, it was revealed that for a long time the DGFI has been operating a secret prison called Aynaghar.[9]
On 26 October 2022, Chowdhury was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general, and he was posted to the Army Training and Doctrine Command (ARTDOC) in Mymensingh Cantonment.[1] Major General Hamidul Haque succeeded him as director general of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence.[1]
Chowdhury was sent to mandatory retirement on 12 September 2024, along with two former director generals of the Directorate-General of Forces Intelligence, Lieutenant General Saiful Alam, and Major General Hamidul Haque. The three officers along, with former director general of special security forces Lieutenant General Mujibur Rahman, were detained soon after the fall of the Fifth Hasina ministry.[10][11]
Alleged role in Enforced Disappearances and Aynaghar
Following the fall of the Sheikh Hasina administration in August 2024, the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances was established on 27 August 2024 to investigate state-sponsored abductions and secret detention centers also known as Aynaghar.[12] In its findings, the commission named Ahmed Tabrez Shams Chowdhury among former high-ranking military officials implicated in enforced disappearances, citing human rights violations during his tenure as Director General of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence from July 2021 to October 2022.[13]
On 18 November 2024, acting on recommendations from the inquiry commission, the Security Services Division of the Ministry of Home Affairs directed the Department of Immigration & Passports to cancel his passport to prevent travel abroad.[14] In July 2025, an investigative report by Netra News listed Chowdhury among senior army officers accused in enforced disappearance cases who had departed Bangladesh despite active travel bans and judicial arrest warrants.[15]
References
Footnotes
- ↑ SBP, BSP, ndc, psc
Citations
- 1 2 3 "Maj Gen Hamidul Haque appointed DGFI chief". The Financial Express. 26 October 2022. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
- 1 2 "Bangladesh Army becomes a role model for its service during Covid-19: Army chief". The Business Standard. 3 December 2020. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
- ↑ "6 units of army get regimental colours". Daily Sun. 8 October 2020. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
- ↑ "Armed Forces Day celebrated". The Asian Age. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
- ↑ "Army Volleyball: 55th Infantry Division emerge champions". UNB. 4 October 2018. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
- 1 2 3 "Saiful Alam new QMG, Tabrej Shams made DGFI chief". Daily Sun. 4 July 2021. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
- ↑ "Be ready for highest sacrifice for motherland: Army chief". bangladeshpost.net. 3 December 2020. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
- ↑ "Bangladesh Army gets Saiful Alam as quartermaster general; Tabrej Shams is new chief of DGFI". bdnews24.com. 4 July 2021. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
- ↑ "Secret prisoners of Dhaka". Netra News — নেত্র নিউজ. 14 August 2022. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
- ↑ "3 ex-DGs of DGFI sent into forced retirement". The Daily Star. 13 September 2024. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ↑ "Reshuffle of top army posts including DG of DGFI". RTV. 12 August 2024. Archived from the original on 13 August 2024. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ↑ "Interim govt forms commission to inquire into enforced disappearances". Jago News 24. 27 August 2024.
- ↑ "২৪ সেনা কর্মকর্তার পাসপোর্ট বাতিলের নির্দেশ" [Instructions to cancel passports of 24 army officers]. Business Bangladesh (in Bengali).
- ↑ "Govt order to cancel passports of 22 officers". Manab Zamin. 19 November 2024.
- ↑ Marzia Hashmi Momo (15 July 2025). "10 Bangladesh army officers fled abroad despite warrants and travel bans". Netra News.