Detective Branch (DB) of Police detained a Bangabhaban official early Wednesday over his alleged involvement in hacking the verified X (formerly Twitter) account of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Shafiqur Rahman.
The detainee has been identified as Mohammad Sarwar Alam, who works as an assistant programmer (ICT) at Bangabhaban.
Law enforcement officials confirmed that he was picked up during a late-night operation conducted in the capital’s Rajarbagh area.
Additional Commissioner of DB Police Shafiqul Islam said a special team carried out the drive based on preliminary investigation and digital evidence linking Sarwar to the cyber intrusion.
Following his detention, Sarwar was taken to the DB office, where he is currently being interrogated to determine the extent of his involvement and whether others were connected to the incident.
The controversy erupted earlier when a post from Jamaat Ameer Shafiqur Rahman’s verified X account went viral on social media. The post reportedly contained remarks that were widely criticised as offensive and discriminatory towards women, sparking intense backlash across various platforms.
Soon after the post gained traction, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami issued a statement claiming that the party chief’s social media account had been compromised. The party denied responsibility for the content and said it did not reflect Jamaat’s official position or Shafiqur Rahman’s views.
To formalise the complaint, Jamaat leaders lodged a general diary with the police, requesting an investigation into the alleged hacking and the misuse of the account.
The party also urged authorities to take swift action against those responsible, describing the incident as a deliberate attempt to tarnish the image of its Ameer and create political controversy.
Police sources said digital forensic analysis is underway to trace the origin of the unauthorised access, including login locations, devices used, and possible coordination with other individuals. Investigators are also examining whether the hacking was politically motivated or part of a broader cyber campaign.
The incident has raised renewed concerns about cybersecurity, misuse of social media accounts of public figures and the protection of digital platforms from unauthorised access.
Authorities said further details would be disclosed following completion of the interrogation and forensic investigation.
