After taking charge of the newly formed railways ministry in 2011, the late Suranjit Sengupta announced that he would look for the “black cat” in the railways, apparently referring to irregularities and corruption in the sector. However, he could not live up to his words and eventually lost his job in the ministry due to corruption charges. However, a Daily Sun investigation has uncovered the “black cat” of Bangladesh Railway. The first instalment of this three-part series examines how a couple secured control of most of the privately operated trains.

In a seemingly unbelievable arrangement, a single couple controls 32 of the 37 privately operated trains in the country through four companies for over a decade, raising concerns about transparency and fair competition in the railway sector.

Although they initially won tenders to operate the trains for four years, they have continued to run them for over a decade as Bangladesh Railway (BR) extended their contracts repeatedly without initiating fresh bidding.

Furthermore, the companies won the tenders by manipulating price quotations with the help of anonymous companies linked to them, in collusion with some top BR officials and with the blessings of a former minister, thereby depriving the state of significant revenue.

Railway officials said they have yet to establish any rules for leasing trains to private operators. The trains were leased out under the railways’ privatisation policy, which was implemented following conditions set by the Asian Development Bank for borrowing funds.

Speaking to the Daily Sun, BR Director General Sardar Shahadat Ali admitted that they had made three mistakes: not calling for fresh tenders to increase revenue, repeatedly extending contracts, and failing to assess the income from trains and properly evaluate the tender process.

Sardar stated, “We did not call for a fresh tender, but we extended the contract with the lessees on the condition of increasing lease payments by 20% with each extension. We extended the contract in the interest of the railway.”

In 2018 and 2019, BR upgraded some local trains to commuter trains, including the 19/20 Bogura Express and the 21/22 Padmarag Express. After the upgrades, BR raised train fares but failed to assess the income and share of revenue with private operators. Some BR officials colluded and took advantage of the operators.

On this, the BR director general said, “All officers and the accused companies have faced legal action and paid compensation to the state for failing to assess the income from the trains.”

The rail couple

The two contractors are Md Salauddin Ripon, son of Md Abdul Mannan of Amirganj in Barisal Sadar Upazila, and his wife Miftahul Jannat Luna. Ripon, an Awami League member, contested the last general election in the Barishal-5 constituency as an independent candidate.

According to Bangladesh Railway’s official documents, 37 trains are operated under private management—16 in the East Zone and 21 in the West Zone.

Contract papers and work orders provided by BR show that 32 of these 37 privately run trains are operated by four companies—LR Trading, TM Trading, SR Trading, and NL Trading—all owned by Ripon and his wife.

These companies secured the tenders through dubious means, such as using dummy bidders to create the illusion of a transparent process.

Alok Sarker and Kamal Hossain, two witnesses to the contracts between these four companies and BR, also submitted tenders on behalf of Mohamaya Furniture Ghor and Tasin Int., respectively. None of the companies ever proposed higher price quotations than the four owned by Ripon and Luna, depriving the government of considerable revenue.

Moreover, all the companies participating in the bidding process—such as M/S Shanta Traders, NL Trading, TM Trading, SR Trading, MK Engineering, LR Trading, and Rubayet Trader International—used the same address: 78 Motijheel.

According to Ripon’s income tax filings (e-TIN No. 858643543068), he is the proprietor of M/S SR Trading, LR Trading, and NL Trading. His wife Luna, with e-TIN No. 7598 1061 054, is the proprietor of TM Trading.

TM Trading operates a total of 15 trains—eight in the East Zone and seven in the West Zone. The company runs trains such as the 43/44 Mohua Commuter (Dhaka-Mohanganj route), the 47/48 Dewanganj Commuter (Dhaka-Dewanganj route), the 3/4 Karnaphuli Commuter (Dhaka-Chattogram route), and others.

Ripon’s companies operate eight trains in the East Zone and nine in the West Zone. NL Trading, for example, operates the 49/50 Balaka Commuter (Dhaka-Mymensingh route) and the 29/30 Sagorika Commuter (Chattogram-Chandpur route) in the East Zone.

In the West Zone, NL Trading runs several trains, including the 15/16 Mohananda Express and the 25/26 Nakshikatha Express, along the Khulna-Chapainawabganj and Rohonpur-Khulna routes.

How they manipulated the tenders

An analysis of tender and contract documents, obtained under the Right to Information Act, shows that the couple’s four companies participated in various tenders, often in violation of tender rules.

For instance, four out of five companies that took part in the tender for the 551 Fast Passenger train used the same address, 78 Motijheel, which is the couple’s office.

Ripon even signed several contracts between his wife’s company, TM Trading, and BR as a witness.

Example of collusive practices

On 7 May 2009, BR leased the 15/16 Mohananda Express (Chapainawabganj-Khulna route) to LR Trading at Tk40,760 per trip. The train had seven coaches, and the fare per passenger was Tk60. However, five years later, in May 2014, the same train was leased to NL Trading at Tk35,029 per trip, despite an increase in coaches to eight and a fare rise to Tk90.

The tenders for this route were submitted by NL, TM, and Shanta Trading, all linked to Ripon and Luna, according to BR documents.

The Daily Sun was unable to reach Ripon despite repeated visits to his office and calls to his mobile phone.

Alok Kumar Sarker, who submitted a tender on behalf of Mohamaya Furniture Ghor, admitted that he manages Ripon and Luna’s four companies but declined to comment further.

Speaking to the Daily Sun, Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) Executive Director Iftekharuzzaman said the collusive practices in BR tenders are well-known. “This is a clear example of how family wealth is being accumulated from public funds through the influence of the ruling party,” he said.

On Thursday, Railways Adviser Dr M Fouzul Kabir Khan told the Daily Sun that they plan to terminate all existing contracts and call for fresh tenders to ensure transparency.

“We will investigate the corruption later, but for now, I want to move forward with new tenders,” he said.