A controversial adviser of the Yunus-led interim government, Khalilur Rahman, alias Roger Rahman, has been picked up by BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman as the new foreign minister, triggering concerns about Bangladesh’s sovereignty.
The National Citizen Party (NCP), Yunus’ brainchild and a Jamaat ally, has raised questions over his appointment. On Tuesday, NCP Convener Nahid Islam said Khalil’s appointment was unethical.
The student advisers resigned before the elections in the interest of impartiality. At that time, it was said that the student advisers were affiliated with a party. “Now, if Khalilur Rahman becomes a minister or part of the government in this BNP government, then the question will arise whether he worked for that political party in the previous interim government,” Nahid said.
Political observers say the deep state has fielded Khalil as its key negotiator so that the Tarique-led cabinet remains under its control, with regard to geopolitical tensions, and defense and trade ties.
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Senior journalists Masood Kamal, Monjurul Alam Panna, and Supreme Court lawyer Mahsin Rashid have vehemently citicised the appointment.
Controversies
Only days before the February 12 election, former national security adviser Khalil was in hot water for his inclusion on the Biman Board to facilitate the Boeing aircraft purchase from the US.
Since seizing power after the August 2024 upheaval, the US-backed Yunus cabal has aggressively pursued a dizzying array of defense procurements that scream favoritism and long-term entrapment.
From drone factories with China to JF-17 Thunder jets from Pakistan, J-10C fighters from China, Eurofighter Typhoons from Europe, submarines from South Korea, T-129 attack helicopters from Turkey, Black Hawk helicopters from the US, and upgrades to warships like BNS Khalid Bin Walid—the list is endless and alarming. Khalil was a key part of these negotiations, alongside aiding the Arakan Army under the guise of the Rakhine Corridor.
In November 2024, former diplomat Khalilur Rahman was appointed as the High Representative for the Rohingya Problem and Priority Issues by the chief adviser. Later, he was made the NSA. At the end of the Yunus regime, his success and acceptance are at zero level.
Yunus had appointed dozens of expatriate Bangladeshis to top positions, and all of them were controversial. Many people have demanded that the authorities investigate the allegations of corruption, nepotism and conflict of interest against them.
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Khalilur Rahman’s past is also questionable. August 2001. A tragic incident occurred in the capital’s Nilkhet. Ayesha Afsari, the protocol officer of the chief adviser, was shot dead by her husband, Zahirul Islam.
Zahirul later committed suicide. Although the incident was initially presented as a family dispute, the investigation revealed a terrifying truth—Ayesha was the victim of rape. The rapist was none other than Khalilur Rahman, the brother-in-law of then Chief Adviser Latifur Rahman and PS-1 of his office.
Posting to New York through seduction, sexual abuse there, the husband’s mental breakdown, and ultimately the tragic consequences of a pair of lives, this terrifying story was buried under state patronage.
According to a report by the Indian media Northeast News, Khalilur Rahman fled the country and took refuge in the United States. He changed his identity to Roger Rahman.
He stayed in various places under pseudonyms, including New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Maryland. In 2014, he applied for political asylum in the United States, claiming to be a BNP worker and fearing death. However, the real truth was to ensure a safe shelter by hiding his crime.
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