Additional DIG Zahir's 'Golden Sunrise' House Now Stands Locked and Guarded, 22 Luxury Cars Returned — but Still No Case Filed
After the Detective Branch (DB) raid, all activity has stopped at the Khilkhet house of Additional DIG Abdullah Al Zahir in the Police Officers Housing Society. The main gate of the house is locked and a police guard has been posted in front. This was the scene found during a visit on Thursday.
Local residents say that until a few days ago, 'rave parties' with loud music were held at the house on 20 to 22 days a month, along with immoral activities; the place was bustling. Since the raid, there has been complete silence.
The three-storey, tree-surrounded house stands in Sector 4 of Police Officers Housing Society-1, north of the 300 Feet road towards Purbachal. While other plots carry their owners' names, Zahir's house bears his name nowhere. Only the words 'Golden Sunrise' are written on the left pillar of the main gate. The house is surrounded by high walls and barbed-wire fencing, with a small security room at the entrance.
Several private cars were also seen left in front of the house. A police member on duty said the cars had been seized during the raid.
The cars were later handed over to their owners in the afternoon. Khilkhet police station officer-in-charge (OC) Muhammad Sohrab Al Hossain said the DB police had returned the cars to the owners and that he knew nothing about it. By Thursday afternoon, police had handed back 22 luxury cars from in front of the house; the vehicles went back to the families of the young men and women.
Most plots around the Sector 4 house are empty. Some have gardens, some have construction under way, and a few have small tin sheds for caretakers to live in. According to locals, many of these plot owners are senior police officers; some former officers live abroad. Employees are kept to look after and clean the plots.
One caretaker said they come twice a month to clean and look after the plots. Loud music could sometimes be heard from the area after evening, but as it was a police officer's house, nobody dared to protest. A mason named Moidul Islam said he had seen loud music playing at the house two or three days a week. Another local, Abdul Alim, said many people stayed silent out of fear, though they knew immoral activities were taking place.
The Khilkhet police outpost is only a short distance from the house. Inspector General of Police (IGP) Ali Hossain Fakir inaugurated the outpost on 8 May this year. Local people are asking why, with a police outpost so close, no effective step was taken earlier to stop such events that went on for so long.
Khilkhet OC Muhammad Sohrab Al Hossain put the responsibility on the outpost in-charge. 'Ask the IC in charge there about this,' he said when questioned. Calls to the Khilkhet outpost in-charge's number afterwards found it busy.
Several locals claim that CCTV cameras in the area were removed after 5 August 2024. With surveillance reduced, they believe it became easier to carry on drug use and immoral activities at the house.
DB sources say the house was rented out through the online platforms Airbnb and Travela. The flat's main host was Additional DIG Abdullah Al Zahir and the co-host was Mahbubul Alam.
Citing the interrogation of Mahbubul Alam, DMP Uttara division deputy commissioner (DC) Elias Kabir said such events had been held there since 2025, with information suggesting 20 to 22 parties a month. Participation required an online booking costing five to six thousand taka.
DMP additional commissioner (detectives) Shafiqul Islam said the owner, Abdullah Al Zahir, used to rent out the house. The raid was carried out over allegations of long-running drug use and illegal DJ parties there. Liquor, yaba, yaba-taking equipment and cannabis-like drugs were seized in the raid.
DC Elias Kabir said young men and women from different parts of the country would book rooms through the online platforms and join the parties. Police say 70 percent of the party income went to Additional DIG Zahir and 30 percent to his staff. During the raid, 84 people were detained, including university students and bankers; 26 of them were young women. Two daughters of a DIG were also among those detained.
Zahir, however, has denied responsibility for the income split and the activities. He said he received 70 percent for renting out the place, while his staff received 30 percent for the house's security and management. The place was rented out with the rules made clear, and he did not know that anyone would engage in immoral activities after renting it.
DC Elias Kabir said no case has been filed over the incident yet. Whether Additional DIG Zahir will be interrogated is a matter for the higher authorities to decide, he added. Zahir was withdrawn (closed) after the raid, but the DB police still could not say clearly what action will follow against him.
The house now stands locked and guarded, and 22 cars have gone back to their owners. But the central questions remain — why did it take so long to stop events that ran for years so close to a police outpost, and what action will ultimately be taken against an additional DIG? All eyes are now on that.
