Mintu Deshwara

A number of people, who do not lead prayers at mosques, have been named in the lists for the government’s cash assistance to imams in Sylhet’s Kulaura during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The lists include names of an expatriate, an officer of the Islamic Foundation as well as former and current political activists.

The Daily Star found such anomalies, along with repetition and omission of names of mosques, in at least four of the lists prepared by the Islamic Foundation in Kulaura for the 13 unions and one municipality under the upazila.

The lists, published on the Kulaura upazila administration’s Facebook page on May 24, include the names and addresses of 771 mosques, the number of imams and muezzins in each mosque, the name and contact number of the imam in charge, and the mosque type.

In the list for Kulaura Sadar union, the name and mobile number of SM Shihab Uddin, office assistant of Kulaura Islamic Foundation, was listed as the imam in charge of Dasermahal Fultali Bari Mosque.

Contacted, Shihab said his name and phone number were mistakenly included in the list prepared hurriedly.

“The list will be revised,” he added.

In the same list, Farid Uddin’s name appeared as the imam in charge of Karergram Jame Mosque and Gutguti Jame Mosque.

But Farid Uddin is the imam of Chakapan North Faridpur Mosque in Kadipur union. “I used to be the imam of Karergram Jame Mosque in 2016,” he said.

Similar mistakes were found in the list for Kulaura municipality.