Sale of water-filled LPG cylinders unearthed in Barisal

The seized truckload of LPG cylinders (left) and one of the cylinders without safety cap cover with polythene (right). PHOTO: STAR

Police have seized a truckload of such LPG cylinders of Kleen Heat Gas Company from its godown at Shitlakhola in the city and arrested one person.

Gas users in the city had been complaining for some days that their cylinders were partly empty and partly filled with water. The cylinders bore marks of LPG companies like Jamuna Speace tek, Total, Summit and Basundhara.

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The customers rebuked their local dealers. Some national dailies also published reports on this.

Agents of those LPG companies suspected that the mischief could be done by Kleen Heat company, but could not catch them for lack of evidence.

On Saturday, in the afternoon, they came to know that a truck loaded with 357 gas cylinders started from Mongla plant of Kleen Heat company for Barisal.

They kept a night vigil on Kleen Heat's godown.

In the morning, when the gas cylinders were being unloaded, dealers of other companies intervened and informed police, who came and seized the truck.

SI Faisal Jaman later told newsmen that out of the 357 cylinders in the truck, only 128 belonged to Kleen Heat and the rest 229 bore marks of four other LPG companies.

LPG cylinders refilled with gas are supposed to have security caps. But the 229 cylinders had no security cap. Those were covered with polythene and partly filled with water.

Officials of Market General Store, dealer of Kleen Heat company, could not show any paper regarding dealership of the other companies. Police arrested Zakir Hossain, manager of Kleen Heat dealer.

The dealer, Mohiuddin Khan, when contacted, said Kleen Heat had supplied one lakh 90 thousand cylinders when he had started the business. About half the cylinders were lost.

So Kleen Heat started collecting similar cylinders of other companies and marketing LPG after refilling those.

He claimed that it was being done at the instance of the company.

Mostofa Kamal, local dealer of Bashundara and Md Moniruzzaman of Jamuna SpaceTek said the mischief was being done to damage the goodwill of their companies.

Papers seized by police from Kleen Heat godown also showed that in another consignment brought to the godown on June 9, 113 out of 266 cylinders were of other companies.

Police said they are preparing to file a case.