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The mystery surrounding the death of popular Bangladeshi film actor Salman Shah remains unsolved even 30 years after his death, despite several investigations and conflicting findings.
Salman Shah, whose real name was Chowdhury Mohammad Shahriar Emon, was found hanging at his residence in Dhaka on September 6, 1996. He was rushed to hospital, where doctors declared him dead. He was only 25.
His death was initially treated as an unnatural death. The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) later concluded that he had died by suicide. A judicial inquiry also reached a similar conclusion.
However, Salman Shah’s family rejected the findings and repeatedly alleged that he had been murdered.
In 2016, following a petition by his mother, Neela Chowdhury, a court ordered a fresh investigation by the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI).
The PBI submitted its report in 2020, maintaining that Salman Shah had died by suicide.
The family again challenged the findings, keeping the decades-old mystery alive.
The case took a new turn in October 2025 when a court ordered that Salman Shah’s death be investigated as a murder.
A murder case was subsequently filed with Ramna Police Station, naming several people as accused.
The CID is now investigating the case. The investigation report was scheduled to be submitted on August 30, 2026, but the investigating officer failed to meet the deadline. The court has since set September 29 as the new date for submission of the report.
Three decades after Salman Shah’s death, the key question remains unanswered: Was his death a suicide, or was the popular actor murdered?
The latest investigation may finally determine the circumstances surrounding one of Bangladesh’s most enduring and controversial celebrity death mysteries.
