Live Desk: Bangladesh lawmaker Mohammad Shahid Islam alias Kazi Papul has been placed on remand in Kuwait for his alleged involvement in human trafficking charges.

Public Prosecution of Kuwait ordered the remand of the MP pending investigation into the charges.

He is also charged with laundering money and exploiting his compatriot workers, Gulf News reported on Monday. Officials at the Bangladesh Embassy in Kuwait said he was being quizzed on remand.

The prosecution has brought the charges after hearing testimonies of five Bangladeshis. They alleged having paid up to 3,000 dinars in exchange for coming to Kuwait. They were also paying annual sums for renewing their residency visas.

The residence investigation department of Kuwait arrested Papul in the Musharraf area on Saturday.

SM Abul Kalam, Bangladesh ambassador to Kuwait, said they wrote to the government of the host country to inform the reason behind the detention of the Laxmipur-2 MP.Papul has become a business giant in Kuwait.

The Middle-Eastern media reported his links to human trafficking after the arrest of a Bangladeshi suspect in February. Papul rejected the allegations.

A vice-chairman of NRB Commercial Bank, Papul is also chairman of NRB Securities Exchange Company. He sits on the board of Crystal Energy Limited as a director.

Dhaka, June-09 (campuslive24.com)//bsc