Former inspector general of police (IGP) Chowdhury Abdullah Al‑Mamun, who led the police force from 2022 until the fall of the Awami League government in August 2024, submitted a confessional statement before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court in Dhaka on 24 March in connection with an International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) case.
In the statement, he declared that bullets were fired from helicopters at students and civilians during the July uprising, a decision taken solely at the political level—not by the police command.
Bangla daily Prothom Alo published a detailed report on it.
According to the report, the former IGP said the helicopter operation was masterminded by RAB Director General Harun‑or‑Rashid, in coordination with the military, and he was not involved in it. The deployment of helicopters was executed as a political decision.
Mamun said that to clamp down on the movement, the use of lethal weapons and conducting “block raids” by dividing protest prone areas were also decided at the political level. Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal informed him that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had authorised the decision to use lethal force. Additional DIG (Headquarters) Proloy Joarder relayed the orders to the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) leadership and other police tiers.
According to the testimony, DMP Commissioner Habibur Rahman and DB chief Harun‑or‑Rashid “were extremely enthusiastic” about using lethal weapons and worked in close coordination with the home minister. On 18 July 2024, the DMP leadership openly ordered the firing using Chinese rifles during protest suppression operations.
Nightly meetings and planning
Mamun said that nearly every night from 19 July, a core committee—comprising Home Secretary Jahangir, Additional Secretaries (such as Tipu Sultan and Reza Mostafa), heads of SB, DB, RAB, DMP, Ansar, NTMC, BGB, and DGFI—gathered at the home minister’s residence to plan protest suppression. As the IGP, Mamun was present. They discussed detailed strategies including the arrest of movement organisers, response tactics, and political decisions on suppression.
Following these meetings, DB chief Harun and DGFI were instructed to arrest student activist coordinators. They took them into DB custody, pressured them through relatives and coerced statements to retract participation in the movement publicly. Mamun opposed these arrests but they proceeded under ministerial instructions. He noted that Kamal referred to Harun as “Jin” for his efficiency in executing political directives.
Meetings at Ganabhaban on 4 August
Mamun revealed that on 4 August 2024, the then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina convened two meetings at Ganabhaban. The morning session at 11am included the PM, law and home ministers, heads of the military services, and national security advisers. They reviewed the uprising’s severity and decided on force deployment; reportedly, no discussion was held regarding regime change.
At 10pm, a second gathering took place with senior civil and military officials including Gen Mujibur Rahman, RAB DG, DMP Commissioner Habibur Rahman, and Al‑Mamun. They laid plans for statewide force deployment on 5 August. The meeting lasted about 30-45 minutes, after which officials proceeded to the military’s control room. They agreed to position forces at all major entry points to Dhaka with joint coordination between the police and the army.
Events on 5 August
In the statement, he said that on 5 August morning, millions of people converged on Dhaka, and the army did not block their entry—with some army officers reportedly siding with protesters. This prevented authorities from halting the mass march to Ganabhaban. Around noon, the Prime Minister’s Office directed the police to intercept crowds near Mohakhali. Mamun later believed the government would collapse.
“In the afternoon, I came to know that a helicopter would arrive at the Police Headquarters to pick up the officers. I boarded that helicopter and went to Tejgaon Airport, and from there, took shelter at the Army Officers’ Mess.”
Additional allegations
During the 2018 parliamentary election, Mamun claimed that former IGP Jabed Patwari advised pre‑stuffing nearly 50 % of ballot boxes overnight under political direction—a move implemented through election officials and police leadership, undermining professional conduct.
Mamun described a systemic pattern of enforced disappearances and the operation of secret detention cells inside RAB from April 2020 to September 2022. While he learned about these abuses, he did not investigate or act due to decisions being taken by other branches, notably intelligence agencies and military advisers, bypassing the IGP’s authority.
At the close of his five‑page statement, Mamun expressed deep shame, regret, and apology for facilitating government‑ordered brutality—including shootings, torture, mass arrests, and killings—against students and civilians during the suppression of the anti‑discrimination movement. He said he provided the statement to reveal the full extent of his involvement.
