Former Cox's Bazar senior district and sessions judge Mohammad Ismail, who was recently attached to the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, said Rohingya camps are breeding ground for criminals.
“Rohingya camps have become factories for criminals. Drug smuggling is one of the main problems in Cox's Bazar. At present, there are more than 10,000 drug cases ongoing in Cox's Bazar courts,” he said at a farewell program organized by Cox's Bazar Nagorik Forum on Saturday.
During the program, senior district and sessions judge Mohammad Ismail discussed his experiences, problems, and limitations during his three-and-a-half-year tenure in Cox's Bazar.
"Cox's Bazar has the highest number of murder cases in the country. Rohingyas are also organising various crimes, including murders,” he said.
The official added that there are some lawyers and brokers, who are making transactions worth crores of taka for bail of accused in the Rohingya drugs, arms, and murder cases.
The image of Cox's Bazar is being tarnished due to the crimes of Rohingyas. These camps are now the main centers for yaba traders, he added.
Additionally, he expressed concern about possible security issues due to the disposal of several sensational cases in Cox's Bazar, including the murder case of Major Sinha Mohammed Rashed Khan. Suspended OC Pradeep and his associates, who were sentenced to death in the Major Sinha murder case, are involved in various conspiracies, he said.
Lawyers, journalists and leaders of various organizations also attended the program.
Approximately one million people from the Rohingya community escaping violence in Myanmar arrived in Cox's Bazar district of Bangladesh in August 2017.
Five years have passed and the crisis has now evolved from an emergency to a protracted mode.
Myanmar’s military had until recently shown little inclination to take back any Rohingya, who have for years been regarded as foreign interlopers in Myanmar and denied citizenship and subjected to abuse.
Attempts to begin repatriation in 2018 and 2019 failed as the refugees, fearing prosecution, refused to go back.
Several thousand Rohingyas staged demonstrations in different camps in Cox’s Bazar on June this year, demanding repatriation to Myanmar.
Bangladesh on Thursday called upon the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to mobilise international support for sustainable repatriation of the forcibly displaced Rohingyas to their homeland in Myanmar.
