Editorial
Extortion on highways
Now the gatekeeper is in the act
It is disheartening to say the least when we hear of the allegation that law enforcement agency personnel being engaged in toll taking on highways that is driving up prices of essentials during the holy month of Ramadan. Investigative journalism has revealed that the price of eggplant purchased by a consumer in Dhaka or Chittagong at Tk50 per kilo is sold by the farmer at Bogra's Mohasthan market at only Tk5 per kg – a tenfold increase in price! Indeed, the price of all vegetables travelling 12km distance from Mohasthan to Rangpur increase, on average, anywhere between ten and twenty times. Allegations have been raised by truckers that the police directly or indirectly extract toll from goods laden trucks at various points on highways.
Where the highway police and the various police stations are supposed to provide protection against robbery and extortion, the manner in which tolls are now being collected are marking up vegetable prices across the board in the capital city. This is reflected when at the beginning of Ramadan, prices of vegetables per kilo jumped Tk10 per kilo on average. Stepping into the second half of the holy month, prices are yet to come down significantly. This sort of unbridled corruption by the very authorities which are responsible for maintaining law and order is completely unacceptable.
Turning a blind eye to what is obviously a systematic regime for toll collection is hardly conducive to protecting consumers' interests and we strongly urge meaningful steps be taken by higher authorities to prevent such extortion and hold those responsible to account.
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