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Squeezed by extortionists

Poor hawkers on Dhaka footpaths forced to pay Tk 1.3 crore a day

Jamil Mahmud
A section of police personnel and Awami League men extort around Tk 1.3 crore a day from footpath hawkers in the capital for "having snacks and tea"
Each of some 2.6 lakh hawkers pays the extortionists about Tk 50 on average every day, according to an estimate by Bangladesh Hawkers federation (BHF).
The money goes into the pockets of police and leaders of the ruling party and its front organisations, including Jubo League, allege hawker leaders.
Asked about the allegations, Inspector General of Police Hassan Mahmood Khandker said whenever there are specific allegations, they probe those and take steps.
Many hawkers said they have no choice but to pay money to run businesses, and try to make up for it by increasing prices.
"I will not be allowed to open my stall if I don't pay them money for snacks and tea every day," said a tea-stall owner on Green Road, asking not to be named. Police and political party cadres extort around Tk 474.50 crore every year from hawkers in Dhaka city alone, and about Tk 375.50 crore in the rest of the country, said BHF leaders.
Hawkers of several areas have alleged that police and ruling party men also extort money from them in the name of cleaning footpaths and providing electricity.
Asked about the allegations, Jubo League Chairman Mohammad Omar Faroque Chowdhury said they would investigate and take steps if hawkers bring specific allegations against any leaders or activists of the pro-Awami League youth body.
The technique of extortion is almost the same all over the capital, and it is done systematically.
Policemen engage agents, known as linemen, to collect money from stalls on footpaths. In return, they give protection to hawkers, according to a number of hawkers.
"If I pay a lineman Tk 20, I don't need to worry about other thugs. I will not be driven away from the footpath," said a hawker who sells combs and cutters on Mirpur road.
The middle-aged man has been paying extortion money for at least eight years.
On condition of anonymity, a lineman in Jatrabari area said the money he collects from footpath hawkers every day goes to some policemen and four to five local ruling party men.
"Sometimes, I have to give money to other thugs as well," said the paid agent.
The linemen usually collect money in the evening, as most hawkers close their sales by then.
The range of payment varies from Tk 20 to Tk 400, depending on commercial importance of the location and size of the business.
For instance, if a hawker has a big stall on a footpath in Motijheel or Farmgate area, he has to pay around Tk 350-400 a day. And for a smaller stall in areas such as Shukrabad or Shyamoli, the amount ranges from Tk 20 to 100.
A lineman collects money from stalls on certain footpaths under a police station and never asks for money from hawkers in other areas.
A hawker leader said, "At least one sardar (team leader] is assigned to guide the linemen working in the areas under a police station."
There are 49 police stations in the capital.
Talking to The Daily Star, Dr Iftekharuzzaman, executive director of Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), said such extortion by police shows the extent of corruption by the law enforcement agency whose integrity is already in question.
He also blamed unhealthy political culture that works as a barrier to getting rid of the malpractice.
"It often becomes difficult to move against corruption, as influential political people usually benefit from this."
"Police should take steps against their corrupt members and bring them to book," he said.
Hawkers Federation President MA Kashem said they have stalls on three-fourths of the capital's footpaths.
Hawkers have no legal right to run businesses on footpaths. But they have a moral right to do so as the government several times promised to rehabilitate them but did little to keep its pledge, he said.
Kashem said they are willing to pay the money to the government, not to the extortionists, so that it can be used for the country's development.