High Court orders probe after DMTCL canteen rented out for Tk1,000

The High Court has ordered an investigation into the renting out of a 7,580 square-foot staff canteen located at the Uttara depot of Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) for Tk 1,000 per month.

A High Court bench consisting of Justice Mostafa Zaman Islam and Justice Md Atabullah passed the order during the hearing of a writ on Thursday.

The court instructed the Road Transport and Bridges Ministry secretary to investigate the matter and submit a report to it within the next month.

Additionally, the High Court issued a rule asking why the notice for renting out the canteen at only Tk1,000 per month should not be declared illegal.

The hearing on behalf of the writ was conducted by the petitioner, lawyer Md Tanvir Ahmed. On the other hand, Assistant Attorney General Selim Azad represented the state. 

Earlier, on March 14, a notice signed by DMTCL General Manager (Store and Procurement) Md Nazrul Islam was issued for renting out the canteen for operation.

The notice said that a tender submitted by Khandaker Enterprise on January 1 for operating the staff canteen for one year, excluding VAT and income tax, at a total of Tk12,000, was considered acceptable. 

The notice called for the contracting firm to agree in writing within seven days to execute a three-year contract.

Later, a writ petition challenging the validity of the notice was filed in the High Court by Md Tanvir Ahmed, a lawyer of the Supreme Court.