The commerce ministry has sent the home ministry a list of police officials who aided illegal syndicates in artificially increasing prices of essentials during Ramadan, and asked it to take departmental action against them.
Commerce Secretary Mahbub Ahmed disclosed this Tuesday at a meeting of the parliamentary standing committee on the commerce ministry with Awami League MP Abul Kashem in the chair.
He also told the 10-member watchdog that Helal Uddin, vice-president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), had resigned from the ministry's market monitoring committee following "problems" with some "dishonest" police officials.
The ministry has sent a similar letter also to the shipping secretary, suggesting legal actions against a few identified officials of the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) and Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC) for their alleged association with the syndicates.
The ministry officials briefed the MPs at the meeting about the commerce ministry's move to stop the abnormal price hike of essentials during Ramadan, where a section of businessmen pocket millions of taka every year, taking advantage of the huge demand of various consumer items.
"On the basis of an intelligence report, a letter has been sent to the senior secretary of the home ministry to take action against the extorting police officials, and police officials aiding the illegal syndicates," said the commerce ministry report placed at the standing committee meeting.
The committee members raised the issue of resignation of FBCCI vice-president Helal Uddin, who had quit the commerce ministry's price monitoring committee three days ago.
"Helal Uddin resigned mainly for his problems with some police officials," Commerce Secretary Mahbub Ahmed told the standing committee in the presence of Minister GM Quader.
The committee recommended that the commerce ministry should not accept Helal's resignation and rope him into the committee.
The commerce ministry report referred that the commerce secretary had sent a similar letter to Shipping Secretary Syed Monjurul Islam seeking legal actions against officials of the BIWTA and BIWTC who had been collecting money from businessmen illegally and siding with the illegal syndicates.
It asked the deputy commissioners of Rajbari and Cox's Bazar to keep vigil on the syndicates and groups involved in extortion.
Cox's Bazar, a district adjacent to Myanmar, is one of the routes providing consumer items while trucks carrying goods cross Rajbari district to reach Dhaka and other places from Benapole land port. Extortionists and illegal syndicates are active in these places.
The standing committee members also inquired the commerce minister about the progress of enacting a law against multi-level marketing (MLM) companies that swindle huge money collecting from people.
GM Quader told the meeting that the draft of the law had been finalised.
The watchdog recommended placing the law in the next session of parliament.
Committee members Awami League MP Tahura Ali and BNP lawmaker Rumana Mahmud also attended the meeting at the parliament building.