The Tetulia BNP unit has strongly protested allegations of extortion made by Sarjis Alam during a views-exchange meeting in Panchagarh.
Party leaders accused Sarjis of spreading “false and fabricated statements” against the unit president and general secretary. His remarks claimed that Tk 1,000 was collected per stone-laden truck in Bhajanpur, amounting to daily extortion in the lakhs, with laborers’ wages partly siphoned off.
BNP leaders rejected the allegations, saying licensed leaseholders legally collect fees of Tk 300–500 per truck, and their leaders are not involved in any such dealings. Local business leaders and the Banglabandha Land Port C&F Association also condemned Sarjis’s remarks, saying BNP leaders were engaged in development work, not extortion.