<i>Ziner badsha, the latest fraud</i>

27 September 2009, 17:00 PM

Our Correspondent, Jhenidah

A section of frauds, introducing themselves as representatives of 'ziner badsha' (king of genies) are realising good amounts of money from credulous people. Several cases of the novel way of cheating, done in the name of making the innocent and simple people rich through some miraculous way, have been detected in Jhenidah district. “Recently a mobile call woke me up at around 3:00am. After receiving it, I heard verses of the Holy Quran at least for one hour. Suddenly a man told me that I will be owner of a vast property as ziner badsha had chosen me. He also warned me not to tell it to others,” said Abul Khair of Baliadanga village under Kaliganj upazila. “The next night I received the call again and he told me to go to an old temple at Nabinagar Bilen village in Dhaka district with Tk 16 thousand 5 hundred 51 as at least two goats will have to be sacrificed to please ziner badsha. “As I went to the place with the money, a few young men came to me, took the amount and told me that ziner badsha will perform Hajj along with me. “I heard verses of the Quran through mobile phone for several nights. Then I was told that ziner badsha will have to slaughter seven camels during Hajj and it will cost Tk 2 lakh 50 thousand. The callers asked me to meet with ziner badsha at the shrine of Shah Sultan at Mohasthangarh in Bogra with the money. Eager to perform Hajj with ziner badsha, Abul Khair managed the money and told the caller to come to his house as it was difficult to go to Bogra with the amount. “But the ziner badsha or his representative did not contact me again. Now I understand that I have been cheated,” Abul Khair said. Human hauler driver Hafizur Rahman of Chhoto Ghigati village under Kaliganj upazila said, “Saying that I would be rich, some young men cajoled me into giving them Tk 1 lakh 20 thousand that I managed by taking loan from NGOs and selling cattle and ornaments. Later, I got the cheat arrested by Rab but I am yet to get back the money.” Atiar Rahman, headmaster of Talshar High School in Kotchandpur upazila also received calls from a young man introducing himself as ziner badsha. Mukaddis Hossain, headmaster of Khashraninagar government primary school in Shailkupa upazila, said a woman introducing herself as an official of a cellphone company told him that he had won Tk 51 thousand 5 hundred in a lottery from their office. She also told him to send Tk 2,000 by flexi load as vat to get the money. “On August 9, a man introducing himself as an official of prominent mobile phone company told me over cell phone that I had won Tk 10 lakh over lottery. The caller told me go to Rajshahi with Tk 44 thousand 5 hundred 65 that day to get the lottery money,” said Shahidul Islam Jhantu of Shisharkundo village under Kotchandpur upazila. Villagers at Kaunia in Rangpur on Friday beat up and handed over to police one Matiur Rahman after he cheated three people of Tk 2 lakh 20 thousand in the name of making them rich with the help of ziner badsha.