Bangladesh Institute of Crime and Justice Studies (BICJS) started its journey in 2011 when a group of Bangladeshi criminologists, along with some young criminology graduates, came together to develop a platform to investigate the causes of criminal behaviors. BICJS gained its legal status on the 2nd of January 2013, as a registered trust. It was registered with the Department of Social Welfare of the Government of Bangladesh as a voluntary social service organization in 2025. BICJS is committed to conducting and promoting scientific studies of behaviors that violate values, norms, and laws to develop policy recommendations for a safer and more secure environment for all.  

BICJS is a think-tank that is the first of its kind in Bangladesh, bringing the areas of crime prevention, crime control, courts, and corrections together. BICJS intends to advocate for evidence-based policy reform in the criminal justice system. It works with the existing criminology and criminal justice-related entities, namely, the Bangladesh Society of Criminology (BSC) and the Center for Criminological Research, Bangladesh (CCRB) of Dhaka Institute of Cultural Affairs (ICA Bangladesh). It has been actively engaged with Bangladesh’s three academic criminology programs in Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University (MBSTU), the University of Dhaka, and the University of Chittagong. To showcase research on Bangladeshi crime and criminal justice issues, and the works of Bangladeshi scholars, BICS and BSC decided in 2021 to publish the first journal titled Bangladesh Journal of Criminology. The first call for the journal will be announced in 2025.

Our current activities include research, policy advocacy, annual conferences, periodic seminars, publications, and skill development initiatives. Our focus is especially on emerging crimes and their prevention.

Objectives of BICJS are:

·         to initiate and promote scientific research into the causes and prevention of crime

·         to undertake programs and research activities in the field of criminal justice

·         to secure cooperation between all bodies engaged in similar work in all parts of the country as well as around the world, and ultimately to promote an international network on crime and justice studies

·         to assist and advise the police, prosecutors and judicial personnel, medical professionals, and government administrators in their investigations, diagnosis and treatment of crime-related cases

·         to promote discussion to educate the general public on public safety issues through publications and other means

·         to promote and conduct interdisciplinary research on crime, crime mapping, and victimization surveys that can contribute to a comprehensive, evidence-based body of knowledge

·         to undertake programs and research on modern criminal justice issues like community policing, democratic policing, restorative justice, alternatives to imprisonment, etc.

·         to undertake and publish books/ booklets, journals, leaflets, bulletins, and other materials on criminal justice issues

The BICJS team is comprised of members specialized in different areas of criminal justice, including:

1.    Mokerrom Hossain, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice, Virginia State University, USA

2.    Mohammed Bin Kashem, Ph. D. Professor, National University, Bangladesh

3.    Mohammad Azizur Rahman, Ph.D. Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Texas A&M International University

4.    Md. Tajul Islam, Advocate, Bangladesh Supreme Court, and Consultant, BLAST

BICJS Activities for 2025-2026 are:

Journal

Bangladesh Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice (BJCCJ)

On 29 June 2025, the Bangladesh Society of Criminology (BSC) and the Bangladesh Institute of Crime and Justice Studies (BICJS) announced the journal’s first call for papers for the inaugural issue of the journal titled Bangladesh Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice to be published biannually.

Research

BICJS will initiate the following research projects by engaging Bangladeshi researchers and students focusing on emerging issues in the criminal justice system of Bangladesh. In doing so, BICJS will engage criminology departments, local organizations (e.g., Institute of Cultural Affairs Bangladesh), and international organizations (e.g., Institute for Justice, Decolonization & Peace) to explore criminal, social, and restorative justice issues. BICJS is making efforts to conduct the following studies:

Mob violence in Bangladesh

Social Violence in Bangladesh

Restorative Justice in Bangladesh

Focused Conversation

Future Directions of Criminological Research in Bangladesh

Bangladesh Institute of Crime and Justice Studies (BICJS) called together a workshop on Future Directions of Criminological Research in Bangladesh on 15 July 2025 virtually on Zoom with Bangladeshi criminologists and graduates from the Department of Criminology and Police Science (CPS) of Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University (MBSTU), Department of Criminology and Dhaka University, and Department of Criminology and Police Science of Chittagong University. This conversation aims to engage Bangladeshi criminologists and students to explore the prospects of criminological research in Bangladesh, and work towards police, research and advocacy together.

National Workshop

BICJS and BSC will jointly organize a National workshop with criminological academics, graduates, and young criminological researchers to develop an action plan, including advocacy briefings based on the existing evidence-based criminological studies in Bangladesh. The findings of the evidence-based criminological research can be a great value in policy-making as well as reforming criminal justice practices in Bangladesh.

International Conference

 BICJS and BSC are planning to host an international conference on the contemporary issues in Criminal justice in 2026. In doing so, conference planning committees and subcommittees will be formed in July 2025. BSC is in the process of consultation with three criminology programs, and the Conference Organizing Committee will send the necessary communique duly.

Other Events

BICJS will collaborate with national and international organizations, including university criminology programs, and the Institute for Justice, Decolonization & Peace, to explore criminal, social, and restorative justice issues through supporting and organizing research, policy, and advocacy activities addressing criminal, social, and restorative justice issues in Bangladesh and beyond.