Railway official suspended over bribery
A railway official was suspended after allegations were brought against him that he took bribe from farmers in Lalmonirhat to help them get the lease of railway’s agricultural land.
The issue was raised at the Anti-Corruption Commission’s public hearing held at District Council Hall Room in the town yesterday.
Following ACC Commissioner AFM Aminul Islam’s directive at the hearing, Lalmonirhat Railway Divisional Manager DRM Shafiqur Rahman and Divisional Estate Officer DEO Rezowanul Haque jointly executed the order.
The railway official is Masum Miah who is the chainman of railway estate office in Lalmonirhat. Chainman works with a surveyor to measure distances.
At the hearing, Rezaul Islam, 58, of Chinipara village in Sadar upazila, alleged that Masum took Tk 28,000 bribe from him to help him get a lease of three bighas of railway’s agriculture land.
“I gave the bribe but didn’t get the lease as Masum demanded another Tk 12,000 bribe, saying that he has to ‘manage’ his higher authorities,” he said.
Nurul Islam, 62, another farmer of the village, alleged that he and some 50 other farmers of the village were forced to give bribe to Masum for getting a lease of railway land.
“We didn’t get the lease as we failed to give the demanded money,” he said, adding that he gave a bribe of Tk 10,000 for getting a lease of 40 decimals of railway land.
ACC Commissioner Aminul also asked the Bangladesh Rural Electrification Board (BREB) authorities in Lalmonirhat to provide power connections to 450 families in Sadar upazila’s Kalmati village. BREB officials and brokers took Tk 15 lakh bribe from them by July 17 this year to give electricity connections, the villagers alleged.
“Return the money to the villagers who gave it with the hope of getting electricity connections,” he asked the BREB authorities.
Aminul also asked the Department of Public Health Engineering to install two tube-wells by today as Abdur Rahim, 35, and his mother Tahera Bewa paid Tk 3,200 for getting the tube-wells from the DPHE a year ago. “It is sad that Abdur Rahim and his mother had to sell a goat to arrange the money,” he said.
At the hearing, people from different areas raised allegations against officials of different departments, including land, settlement, education, and relief and rehabilitation. Some issues were solved immediately at the hearing.
Lalmonirhat Deputy Commissioner Abu Jafor, Sadar Upazila Nirbahi Officer Jayashree Rani Roy, freedom fighters and journalists, among others, took part in the hearing.