Barapukuria Coal Scam: ACC interrogates nine more

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) yesterday interrogated nine former and current officials of the Barapukuria Coal Mining Company Ltd (BCMCL), including three accused in a case filed in connection with the Barapukuria coal scam.

ACC's Deputy Director Shamsul Alam questioned them for about four hours, from 9:30am, at the Commission's Segunbagicha headquarters over disappearance of 1.42 lakh tonnes of coal worth about Tk 230 crore.

The three accused are: Muhammad Khalilur Rahman, deputy manager (coal handling and management); Md Abdul Mannan Patwary, former general manager (finance and accounts); and Gopal Chandra Saha, former general manager (accounts).

Six other officials are: Md Sarwar Hossain, manager (accounts); Md Kamrul Hasan, manager (sales and revenue collection); Mohammad Noman Pradhania, deputy manager (marketing and customer services); AKM Sirajul Islam, former general manager (administration); Md Shariful Alam, former general manager (administration); and Al Amin, assistant manager (security).

ACC on Tuesday and Wednesday interrogated 16 officials of BCMCL, including its former managing director Habib Uddin Ahmed, in connection with the case filed over disappearance of the coal with Parbatipur Police Station in Dinajpur on July 24.

Coal production of BCMCL was suspended on June 16, said officials.

Meanwhile, Monsur Ali, former BNP lawmaker of Dinajpur-5, yesterday said the local lawmaker has to take responsibility for the irregularities at BCMCL.

“Local lawmaker can't avoid his responsibility as the mine is located in his constituency,” he said at a press conference at a community centre in Phulbari upazila of Dinajpur around noon.