Mass extortion of UP chairman in Lohagara alleges

 Lohagara, Chattogram Correspondent :

 Mass extortion of Jahangir Hossain Manik, the former Awami League president of Putibila Union and current Putibila UP chairman, is going on in Lohagara of Chattogram.
 Some are in the name of toll and some are doing this extortion with tokens in the name of Hatbazar Management Committee. Being influential, no one dares to complain against him and no one challenge him in the UP elections a year ago. As a result, he was elected as the UP Chairman unopposed. After becoming the chairman, he created a gang of teenagers in the area. Basically, he is using them for extorting money. People are subjected to various forms of torture at the hands of juvenile gang members if they show their inability to pay. Mohammad Mizan, son of deceased Nurul Amin of Nayabazar area of Putibila Gaurdshan, is in charge of the juvenile gang.
 It has been revealed from the ground investigation that, in Nalarkul area of Putibla, in the name of Union Parishad toll, the tolls are collected from vehicles carrying goods including bricks, sand, bamboo, trees and other goods moving on the Darbeshat DC road of the upazila. On one side of the road, signboards have been given in the name of toll stating the amount of money to be collected and the type of vehicle. Millions of rupees are collected from hundreds of cars running day and night. Meanwhile, the same style of extortion is going on in Putibila Mcharhat market. Mohammad Iqbal, a businessman of M Charhat Bazar, said that the Chairman’s people take a subscription of Tk 50 to Tk 300 from each shop in the market. He also said that not only the shopkeepers, but also the sellers of potatoes and radish brought to the market by farmers from far away to sell them. He expressed his anger and said that he was charged 50 taka to sell a small chicken. He also said that although this money was taken from traders with receipts in the name of Hatbazar Management Committee, there is no such committee. He also said that due to the fact that the farmers often have quarrels with the farmers regarding the collection of this subscription.
When asked whether the Union Parishad has any authority to collect money in the name of toll, UNO Sharif Ullah said, ask the UP Chairman about this.
When Putibila UP Chairman Jahangir Hossain Manik was contacted over the phone, he asked him who told him to collect the money?
 He said that there are government letters and orders to collect the money. Meanwhile, he admitted that he takes a certain amount of money from the lessee of this market for the maintenance of the market.
Mentionable, a convening committee has been formed for the cleanliness of the market. Under them, subscriptions are taken. Four people have been kept to maintain order and keep the market clean. They are paid with the money taken from the traders.
Faridul Alam, the former UP chairman of Putibila said that he has never collected such toll in Putibila. He also informed that no chairman before or after him has collected such toll. Also, no such toll has ever been seen anywhere in Lohagara Union.