Financial Fraud or Political Strategy? Viral AI Videos Target Zia Family Supporters
A viral video shared from a Facebook profile ‘Zaima Rahman’, named after the only daughter of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Chairman Tarique Rahman, shows the politician promising “20,000 taka for each countryman” on the occasion of the February 12 national elections. The announcement is met with cheers from the crowd in the video.
At the end of the video, Tarique instructs people to share the post and follow the page, and asks them to write their bKash mobile financial service (MFS) number in the comments to receive money. Many complied.
Although it appears to violate the electoral code of conduct, experts confirm that the video is AI-generated and the page does not belong to Zaima Rahman.
Scammers use AI to generate numerous deceptive videos featuring the likeness of ‘Zia family’ members. The scam tricks unsuspecting individuals into sharing their MFS account details, including bKash, Nagad, or Rocket, in hopes of receiving financial gifts.
Experts say these schemes pose a significant risk not only to the victims but also to the political parties involved, and may even raise questions about the election. Some suggest that political parties, along with law enforcement agencies, actively combat such fraudulent activities and inform the public about the scams.
Tarique is the son of Bangladesh’s sixth president, General Ziaur Rahman, a Liberation War hero and founder of the BNP. His mother, Khaleda Zia, was Bangladesh’s first female prime minister. Their family is known as the ‘Zia family.
Previous Incidents of Similar Fraud
Last month, another viral video shared by a page called ‘Zaima Rahman Official’ showed Dr. Zubaida Rahman, Tarique’s wife, promising financial support in exchange for votes for BNP. Fact-checkers (1, 2), including Dismislab, investigated the authenticity of the video and confirmed that it was AI-generated.
Another video posted on a page named after Zaima urged viewers to share their bKash numbers, promising to give each 20,000 taka on her birthday. A Dismislab fact-check found the AI-generated video used old photographs of Zubaida. This page was removed shortly after the exposure.
Another video from the Facebook page Zaima Rahman shows Tarique, Zubaida, and Zaima standing with stacks of cash in their hands. The Bengali text above the video reads, “follow us, and get 60,000 taka.” In the video, Zubaida can be heard saying, “Assalamu Alaikum. Those of you who love my husband, please follow this page and share the video. And in the comments, tell us which district you are viewing from.” Thousands of Facebook users wrote the names of their districts and sub-districts along with their numbers in the comments.
One video from a page named ‘Mr Tarique Rahman 9.9’, features Zaima clad in a red and green sari, offering 50,000 taka to anyone who follows the page on the occasion of Shab-e-Barat. On another page, a video shows acclaimed photographer Shahidul Alam with Zaima. In it, Zaima, holding cash in her hands, says, “I am Zaima Rahman. I am giving 20,000 taka to everyone on the occasion of Ramadan.” Shahidul Alam is seen accepting the money and saying, “To get money, follow the page, share the video in 10 groups, and give your bKash, Nagad numbers.”
In another video, Zaima is seen with her cousin Zafia Rahman, the daughter of Tarique’s younger brother Arafat Rahman Coco, and saying: “I cannot give away 50,000 taka because I don’t have follow and share. Please follow and share quickly.” Thousands of Facebook users wrote their names and numbers in the comments.
In a video on another page, Coco’s wife, Sharmila Rahman, is heard saying, “To celebrate my daughter Zaima Rahman’s birthday, everyone will be given 10,000 taka after midnight tonight. If you want to money, you have to follow and share in 10 groups and write your bKash number in the comments.”
Dismislab contacted two Facebook users who had shared their numbers in such posts; both said they had not received any calls or money.
Fraudulent Pages and Groups
Dismislab has identified at least 13 pages (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13) that spread AI-generated videos and images soliciting mobile banking account numbers. Multiple pages share the same videos.
Some of these pages have added 1, 2, 3, or 5 million to manipulate their follower counts. For example, a page with 5,500 followers is named ‘Zaima Rahman 1M’. Although the number of followers on another page is just above 1,000, the page description claims 1.2 million followers to mislead people.
Another page, ‘Zaima Rahman BNP’ uses a fraudulent ‘blue tick’ beside the profile picture. These pages were created between January 6 and February 7. One of the newest, ‘Zaima Rahman Taka Dae’, opened on February 7.
There are at least six Facebook groups (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6) opened under the names Tarique, Zaima, and Zafia that regularly share AI-generated videos promising financial giveaways. These pages are working as admins of different groups. For example, the admins of the group ‘Zaima Rahman Official group BNP’ include ‘Zaima Rahman 1 Million’, ‘Zaima Rahman 2 Million’, ‘Mr. Tarique Rahman 9.9’, and ‘Zaima Rahman Taka Dae’.
On the other hand, three pages—’Yamin Bhai’, ‘Zaima Rahman 1 Million’, ‘Zaima Rahman 5 Million’—are in the admin list of both ‘Zaima Rahman’ and ‘Zaima Rahman Fans group’. Among them, the ‘Yamin Bhai’ page uses an AI-generated picture of Zaima as a profile picture. Similar videos of Zaima and other Zia family members have been shared from this page. However, real videos of various people taken from the videos of a vlogger named ‘Mojaher Bhai’ were posted on this page on January 29 and before, with false promises of giving away money.
Political Campaign or Financial Fraud?
Are these scams purely financial, or do they serve a deeper political agenda? Digital investigative media The Dissent contacted people who posted their mobile numbers in the comments of an AI-generated video of Zubaida Rahman, seeking financial help.
Some users said they had received multiple phone calls and were asked to send money first to receive the promised donation. Some said they had sent money and got cheated.
Sumon Rahman, dean of the School of Social Sciences and head of the Department of Media Studies and Journalism at the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB), says these scams were driven by financial rather than political motives. He told Dismislab: “Such incidents cannot be stopped by fact-checking alone.” He said the political parties and law enforcement must intervene by issuing public warnings.
Wazed Feroze, executive director of Democracy Watch, told Dismislab that ordinary people are easily duped by these videos. He said: “Those whose pictures or names are being used should speak out. They should form a team to identify the culprits and take measures to take down the fraudulent content.”
Disclaimer: The original version of this fact-check report was published in Bengali on Dismislab’s Bengali website on February 9, 2026. The English translation was completed later; however, to maintain time accuracy and avoid any potential misinterpretation, the English version has been published with the original publication date.
