In Bollywood films, the word “underworld” may sound like a thrilling world of gangsters, power, and adrenaline. But in real life, it is anything but glamorous. The underworld means murder, extortion, drugs, arms trafficking, and fear. What’s more alarming is that this dark reality has long been intertwined with Dhaka’s own history.
In the late 1980s, amid political instability and administrative weakness, Dhaka’s underworld began to rise like fire through dry straw. It’s hard to believe that the bright, bustling capital we see today was once, through the 1990s and early 2000s, under the heavy shadow of gang violence.
Back then, political parties often relied on local youth leaders and student activists to consolidate street power. These young men once foot soldiers eventually evolved into gang leaders. Their operations were simple yet brutal: collecting extortion money from business owners, spreading narcotics, carrying out targeted killings, and, during elections, occupying polling centers or threatening rival candidates.
Old Dhaka, Mohammadpur, Hazaribagh, Wari, Uttara, and Mirpur each became known for their own gang networks territories ruled by fear. Families lived in constant dread of abduction and murder; children were kept home from school. The youth, meanwhile, were drawn into drugs and crime, as faith in law and justice crumbled completely.
The government finally took a stand in 2001, when the Ministry of Home Affairs published a list of 23 top criminals, marking the beginning of a nationwide crackdown. With the formation of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), many underworld figures were either killed in “crossfire” or arrested. Gradually, Dhaka began to breathe again.
But today, it seems history may be repeating itself.
Following the 2024 student uprising, crime rates in the capital have surged to an alarming level. Between August 2024 and October 2025, nationwide data shows over 500 murders, 300 robberies, 1,070 muggings, and more than 70 extortion cases figures that expose a frightening resurgence of lawlessness.
Experts point to the same old causes: a weakened law enforcement system, political instability, and administrative inefficiency. Yet perhaps the most chilling factor is the return of the 1990s’ crime lords.
According to recent reports, several of the notorious figures from the 2001 “top 23” list including Imamul Hasan Helal, alias Pichchi Helal, and Sanjidul Islam, alias Captain Iman, were released on bail following the August 5 uprising. At least 27 other listed gangsters have also been granted bail, and soon after, new waves of extortion have begun.
Criminologists suggest these men are not just seeking quick money they’re re-establishing dominance, sending a clear message to the business community that the underworld hierarchy of the 1990s is back in play.
Certain “hotspots” are again seeing increased gang activity Dhanmondi, Elephant Road, New Market, Nilkhet, Mohammadpur, Mirpur, Motijheel, Badda, and Mohakhali among them.
Look closely, and the parallels are striking: the same political fragility, the same administrative weakness, the same neighborhoods, and the same rise in organized crime. Only the calendar has changed.
Perhaps history really does repeat itself and this time, it warns us that Dhaka may once again be drifting toward the grip of the underworld. Unless urgent and coordinated action is taken, we may soon find ourselves reliving a past we once vowed never to return to.
