Bangladesh
Bangladesh Hope for more profit making speedboat authorities to break rules
Dhaka, May 9, 2021: Speedboat owner Chan Mia alias Chandu Mollah alias Chandu ordered passengers to cross the road in violation of the ban in the hope of making more profit.
The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) said that none of the three speedboats owned by it, including the speedboat that crashed at Mawa Ghat, had any valid documents or approval.
Commander Khandaker Al Moin, director of the RAB's legal and media wing, told a news conference at the RAB media center in the capital's Karwan Bazar on Sunday (May 9th) afternoon.
On May 3, a passenger speedboat collided head-on with a sand-loaded bulkhead at the Mawa ferry terminal, killing 27 passengers. Five passengers were rescued in the incident.
A case was lodged at Shibchar police station in Madaripur district on May 4 over the incident. In this context, RAB arrested the accused speed boat owner Chan Mia alias Chandu Mollah alias Chandu (40) mentioned in the statement of case by conducting a raid in Tegharia area under Keraniganj police station at around 2.30 am on Sunday (May 9).
At the press conference, Khandaker Al Moin, commander of RAB's legal and media wing, said that Chan Mia alias speedboat was crossing the river in the hope of making more profit by violating the lockdown ban. Chandu admitted the matter during preliminary interrogation after his arrest. He said the speedboat was carrying more passengers than its capacity. There was also a lack of personal safety arrangements for passenger transport on speedboats.
We also learned from his interrogation that they were crossing the speedboat illegally in the lure of extra profit and the passengers were also encouraged to cross the speedboat at risk.
"We have come to know that the accused Chan Mia alias Chandu had been in the business of transporting passengers by speedboat for five years," he said. None of his three speedboats are approved. Accused Chandu went into hiding immediately after the accident.
Responding to a question from reporters, Khandaker Al Moin said there were four accused in the case. The main accused driver is undergoing treatment at the hospital under the supervision of the police. Our operation is continuing to arrest the other two accused in the case including one lessee and another accused as fugitives.
