A local Awami League leader and a rice trader were sentenced to one-month imprisonment by a mobile court for selling 1,440 kilogrammes of government rice meant for relief at Singra upazila in Natore on Wednesday.
Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) of Singra and Executive Magistrate Nasrin Banu sentenced them to one-month imprisonment in a raid at Sarupara area at the upazila. The two were jailed after they were arrested with around 48 sacks of the relief rice, our Natore correspondent reports.
The convicted Awami League leader Awal Hossain Shwapon is the son of Fazlur Rahman of Shukash Union, and the science and technology secretary of Shukash union unit of Awami League. On the other hand, Rahmat Ali is the son of Bastillah of Sharupur village at the upazila. UNO Nasrin Banu said that the rice was seized from a house of Rahmat's relative on Wednesday. During interrogation, Rahmat told them he had bought the rice from Swapan, she added.
Later, both Rahmat and Swapan were arrested and jailed for one month by a mobile court led by UNO and Executive Magistrate Nasrin Banu. The rice was meant to be allocated for the poor and extreme poor and be sold at Tk 10 per kg as part of the government's social protection programmes.
