Bangladeshi actress Meghna Alam arrested for threatening Saudi ties

DHAKA: Bangladeshi police have arrested model and actress Meghna Alam for allegedly trying to deteriorate Bangladesh’s ties with Saudi Arabia, according to local media reports.

The Detective Branch (DB) of the Bangladesh Police raided Meghna Alam’s house while she was livestreaming on Facebook, claiming a relationship with a Saudi diplomat.

In the now-deleted 12-minute video, authorities can be seen barging in and identifying themselves as police before the stream abruptly ended.

Alam was taken into custody without formal charges under the Special Powers Act, which allows for detention without trial for national security and public order concerns.

The incident sparked massive public outcry, leading to the removal of the top DB official overseeing her arrest.

Government’s legal advisor Asif Nazrul admitted that detaining Alam under the Special Powers Act was a mistake.

She was produced before a Dhaka court, which sent her for 30 days to jail.

Alam claimed to be in a relationship with a married foreign diplomat, later identified as the Saudi ambassador to Bangladesh by her father, Badrul Alam.

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“The ambassador and Meghna were in a relationship, and my daughter refused his marriage proposal because he already has a wife and children,” he said.

According to Badrul Alam, his daughter refused the ambassador’s marriage proposal upon learning he was already married with children. She allegedly contacted the diplomat’s wife after discovering his marital status.

Badrul Alam alleged that the diplomat contacted the Home Ministry, leading to his daughter Meghna Alam’s arrest.