A Dhaka court on Thursday set August 30 for the submission of the investigation report in the murder case over the death of film actor Salman Shah.
The report was scheduled to be submitted on Thursday, but the investigation officer, CID Inspector Ziaul Morshed, failed to do so. Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Jewel Rana subsequently deferred the submission date.
Police Prosecution Department SI Shah Alam confirmed the matter.
The case was filed on October 20, 2025, by Salman Shah's brother, Mohammad Alamgir Kumkum, on behalf of their mother, Neela Chowdhury, accusing 11 people, including the actor's former wife, Samira Haque.
Salman Shah, whose real name was Chowdhury Mohammad Shahriar Emon, was found dead at his Eskaton residence in Dhaka on September 6, 1996, at the height of his acting career.
Following his death, his father, Qamaruddin Ahmed Chowdhury, initially filed an unnatural death case. On July 24, 1997, he sought to convert it into a murder case, alleging that his son had been killed.
The court directed the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to investigate. On November 3, 1997, the CID submitted a final report concluding that Salman Shah had died by suicide.
Dissatisfied with the findings, Qamaruddin filed a revision petition. On May 19, 2003, the court ordered a judicial inquiry.
After nearly 11 years, a judicial inquiry report was submitted on August 3, 2014, which also ruled out murder.
Following Qamaruddin's death, Neela Chowdhury continued pursuing the case. On February 10, 2015, she rejected the judicial inquiry report, alleging that 11 people could have been involved in her son's death.
The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) later began investigating the case, but on August 21, 2016, the court ordered the agency to stop its investigation following objections raised by the state.
The Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) subsequently took over the case and, after four years of investigation, submitted its final report on February 25, 2020.
The PBI said it found no evidence of murder after examining statements from 54 witnesses and reviewing the evidence collected. The report concluded that Salman Shah had died by suicide following family disputes and mental distress.
Neela Chowdhury rejected the PBI findings and sought a further investigation.
On October 31, 2021, a Dhaka metropolitan magistrate accepted the PBI report and ordered the accused discharged.
Salman Shah's family later filed a revision petition before the Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court. The petition was accepted on June 12, 2022, although hearings were delayed.
On October 20, 2025, the 6th Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge of Dhaka, Md Jannatul Ferdous Ibn Haque, accepted Neela Chowdhury's revision petition and directed Ramna Model Police Station to register a murder case and investigate the allegations based on the complaint filed by Salman Shah's father and the statement of Rizvi Ahmed alias Farhad.
According to the case statement, the accused, along with unidentified accomplices, allegedly conspired to murder Salman Shah on September 6, 1996.
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