Bangla Press Desk: The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has decided to hand over 30 luxury vehicles – imported under special duty-free facility by former Awami League lawmakers and never resealed from the port – to the government vehicle pool under the Department of Government Transport.
A recent letter from NBR directed the Chattogram Customs Commissioner to complete the transfer process.
The letter dated 24 September, signed by NBR Member Kazi Mostafafizur Rahman, stated, “Following decisions by the Finance Division and the Ministry of Public Administration, it has been determined to transfer these vehicles to the Department of Government Transport.
Instructions are hereby given to take necessary measures to transfer these vehicles, which have been lying at the port for an extended period, to the government transport department in accordance with standing auction orders."
Following the July uprising, parliament was dissolved on 6 August last year, and the NBR cancelled the duty-free benefits. Consequently, former MPs did not take delivery of these vehicles from the port.
The former MPs imported a total of 51 vehicles, of which seven were released before and after the political change, while the rest stayed at the port for over 11 months despite repeated auction efforts.
Due to prolonged storage at the port, their quality has deteriorated, and the letters of credit from financing banks have been settled.
According to Chattogram port sources, the luxury fleet includes various models such as BMW, Toyota Land Cruiser, Toyota Jeep, and Toyota Station Wagon GS, among others.
Earlier, 24 of the vehicles were put up for auction in February this year, with bids ranging from Tk1 lakh to TK3.1 crore, far below their reserved price of TK9.67 crore per vehicle. Ten of the vehicles also received no bid then. A second auction would have resulted in the government losing over Tk150 crore in revenue.
NBR Chairman Md Abdur Rahman Khan said, “These vehicles will now be used in the government’s vehicle pool. Considering the low prices received in previous auctions, we decided to transfer them to government use in the national interest.” According to sources, Chattogram Customs House has already completed primary work for transferring the vehicles to the transport directorate.
However, the official handover process is being delayed since the pricing has not yet been finalised.
Chattogram Customs Deputy Commissioner (DC) and Spokesperson HM Kabir told the Daily Sun that they received instructions from NBR in this regard and the process is likely to be completed very soon.
“However, since the government-set reserve price for these vehicles is quite high, we have written to the Ministry of Public Administration seeking clarification on the exact price at which we should transfer the vehicles to the transport directorate. Once they specify the price, we will proceed with the transfer accordingly,” he added.
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