Md Joynal Abedin Khan :
The Sunday’s sunshine is being considered as curse of ‘casino king’ Ismail Hossain Smarat! He was detained in the morning and sent to jail in the evening!
His landing in jail may be compared with collapsing Star! Just elapsing few hours, the king reached the beggar position! Can anybody imagine! Will people call it a sorry story or not?
This time is really hard for him as nobody (well-wishers) stood by him! Where is his power? All achievements have gone in vain! Is this film scenario! Nobody knows the reply! It proves that nobody is out of law and justice?
Earlier, several media outlets have already dubbed Samrat as a “casino king,” claiming no casino was set up in Dhaka without his approval. Samrat is a regular gambler, and he used to travel to Singapore very often. He reportedly spent at least one-third of each month gambling in Singapore, according to media reports.
He used to visit Marina Bay Sands Casino as a high-roller, even receiving limousine service from Changi Airport to the casino.
The political journey of Dhaka south city unit Jubo League President Ismail Hossain Chowdhury Samrat started during the 1990 anti-Ershad movement. At that time, he was a prominent Chhatra League leader of the undivided Dhaka city unit.
Samrat was tasked with organizing protests in, and around the capital’s Ramna area. For his role during the mass uprising, he was tortured, and even jailed.
During the five-year tenure of BNP after autocratic ruler HM Ershad was toppled in 1990, Samrat was sued in a number of cases.
By the time Awami League President Sheikh Hasina was voted to power in the 1996 general election, Samrat had already joined Jubo League. During the 1996-2001 Awami League regime, he emerged as an influential leader of the youth front.
He was also a frontline leader during the 1/11 changeover. After the tenure of the last caretaker government, when Awami League came to power again, Samrat continued his rise through the ranks.
Samrat is a common face at major events of the ruling Awami League, leading processions to mark occasions.
He was elected president of Jubo League’s Dhaka south city unit at the platform’s sixth council, held on July 14, 2012
This Jubo League leader is usually accompanied by a massive entourage when he visits his home village. He is well known for his charity work in the locality, including donations to local mosques, and madrasas.
In the earlier background, Samrat became the joint secretary of 53 No. ward Jubo League in 1993. Awami League Presidium member Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim was the chairman of Jubo League at the time.
But Samrat grew reckless once he got the post of ward Jubo League joint secretary. He was even accused of beating up his own Ward President Lutfor Rahman.
“Samrat began to visit the central office more often after Jahangir Kabir Nanak and Mirza Azam were put in charge of Jubo League in its 2003 council,” said the Jubo League leader, who did not want to be named.
It was then that Mohiuddin Mohi and Nurunnabi Chowdhury Shaon became the president and general secretary of Dhaka South Jubo League.
After a clash with Mohi, Shaon made Samrat the organising secretary to gain a foothold in the unit.
As a loyal aide to Shaon, Samrat used to control the tenders floated by Dhaka City Corporation after the Awami League-led grand alliance came to power in 2009.
In the last ten years, he was involved in tender manipulation, occupation of land and homes and extortion in Dhaka South.
Hee was accused of demanding millions from Anjuman Mofidul Islam, an Islamic charity, specializing in helping the poor deal with interment of dead relatives where the prime minister Sheikh Hasina and her younger sister are also patrons.
Initially, he lived at the government quarters in Kakrail and got involved in politics in 1990.
In the 199-96 period, he left Awami League’s student wing Chhatra League and joined Jubo League and was elected organizational secretary of Dhaka city south Jubo League.
In 2012, he became the president of Jubo League south and began his casino trade.
He used to supply ‘activists’ to political rallies and received accolades for presenting theme based rallies which attracted the attention of party high ups, earning Samrat accolades.
Samrat is originally from East Saheb Nagar village of Mirza Nagar Union Parishad, under Parshuram upazila of Feni. He is the son of the late Fayez Uddin Chowdury, and the eldest of four siblings.
Hailing from Feni, Samrat’s father served at a low post in Rajdhani Unnayan Katripakkha (RAJUK) and Samrat grew up in Dhaka courtesy his father’s job.
