Rajshahi Airport: Chaos over security check
Security personnel at Shah Makhdum Airport “forced” a top official of the Detective Branch of Rajshahi Metropolitan Police (RMP) to go through a second security check on Wednesday.
Enraged by the incident, a constable of RMP's Special Branch, posted at the airport, assaulted a security guard.
Constable Jalal was later transferred over the incident.
Around 4pm on the day, Abdullah Al Mamun, deputy commissioner of RMP's Detective Branch, went to the airport to catch a Dhaka-bound flight. He went through preliminary scrutiny, collected his boarding pass and got on the plane, without going through another check.
Noticing that, security personnel stopped the flight.
Mamun then returned to the lobby and completed the scrutiny.
“Earlier, when I started walking towards the plane, a security person approached me. I gave him my identity and asked whether I need to go through any more scrutiny,” Mamun told The Daily Star yesterday.
“He stayed mum. I thought I didn't need any,” he added.
Mamun said most security personnel knew him as he often inspected the airport's security measures and remained there for protocol duty. They used to allow him to pass without any inspection.
“After I boarded the plane, I heard there was a commotion at the airport. I got off and went there. I saw a police member arguing with a security guard, and at one stage he [policeman] started a fight,” he added.
Mamun said he then went through scrutiny and reprimanded the police member for his behaviour.
Without elaborating, Setafur Rahman, airport manager, said an altercation ensued between the two, which was later settled.
Masud Rana, the security guard, claimed that he requested the police official to go through security scanning, but he (the official) did not.
Iftekhayer Alam, an assistant commissioner of Special Branch, said Constable Jalal was transferred for his actions.
He claimed that the airport authorities have begun the second security check just a few days ago, and Mamun was unaware of it.