Passenger assaulted for protesting excess fare in Companiganj
Noakhali Correspondent
An allegation has been made that a passenger was assaulted and had his head injured by staff at a bus counter for protesting against excessive bus fare on the Basurhat to Chattogram route in Companiganj, Noakhali.
The incident occurred on Saturday at around 11:15 AM at the Basurhat Express counter in the new bus stand of Basurhat Bazar in the upazila.
The assaulted passenger is Md. Alauddin (30), a resident of the Majhi Bari of Nursonapur village in Ward No. 4 of Norottompur Union in the neighbouring Kabirhat upazila. He is the son of Siraj Mia and an apprentice lawyer at the Noakhali court.
Victim Alauddin alleged that at around 11:15 AM, he went to the Basurhat Express counter to purchase tickets to travel to Chattogram along with his elder brother Mohiuddin Bahar (48), sister-in-law Tamalima Khatun (38), nephew Saiful Islam (20), and two nieces Nusrat (3) and Tajnahar (6). The fixed fare from Basurhat to Chattogram is Tk 250. However, the counter staff were charging Tk 300 per passenger using Eid-ul-Azha as a pretext.
Alauddin further claimed that he protested the overcharging by saying Eid was already over. This led to an argument between him and two counter staff members. They then verbally abused and assaulted him. Later, hired thugs of Basurhat Express arrived, beat him brutally, and smashed his head with random blows. The attackers also snatched Tk 63,000 from his elder brother. The women and children accompanying them were harassed. They immediately reported the incident verbally to the Companiganj Army Camp and police station. When they went to the army camp, the Basurhat Express staff again attempted to assault them. Upon being informed, the army personnel came out, and the attackers fled the scene.
When contacted, Basurhat Express MD Mazharul Haque Tawhid denied the allegations, stating that no passenger was attacked over fare disputes. However, he admitted hearing that a fight broke out between two parties over front seats, during which two counter staff members were also injured. He also added that the current fare from Basurhat is Tk 300 because the buses return empty from Chattogram.
Companiganj Police Station OC Gazi Mohammad Fawzul Azim said, police were sent to the scene after receiving a complaint about a passenger being assaulted over fare disputes. The victim came to the station and gave a verbal complaint.
