Tk 865 for filing GD, Tk 5,313 to avoid torture on remand

Twenty-nine per cent of complainants said that they had to offer a bribe of Tk 2000 on an average to get the accused arrested. Seventy-one per cent of the arrestees paid Tk 6,141 on an average.

29 had to pay Tk 2000 on an average while 26 per cent had to pay Tk 4258 to avoid arrest.

These were revealed by Concerned Citizens' Committee (CCC), local unit of Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), at a press conference at Mymensingh Press Club on Thursday. The CCC earlier conducted a survey on alleged graft by police at Kotwali police station.

A total of 154 people who went to the police station or were taken there were interviewed during the survey conducted from February 11 to April 10 last year, CCC Convener Prof Mokarram Hossain told the press conference.

The survey also identified problems faced by policemen in their work.

At the Kotwali police station, the number of cases on land dispute was the highest and that on murder was the lowest.

The survey revealed that 46 per cent of the people who informed police about their cases verbally paid a bribe of Tk 2150 on an average and 67 per cent of the bribe money went to pockets of police officials.

It was claimed in the survey that 62 per cent of the accused placed on remand paid Tk 5,313 on an average to avoid torture.

The CCC survey report also suggested some steps to improve the standard of police service. These include a separate pay scale and more facilities for policemen and providing more logistics and formation of a committee to monitor work at the police station.

The press conference was also attended by CCC members AHM Khalequzzaman and Emdadul Haque Millat, Acting Police Superintendent of Mymensingh SM Akhtaruzzaman.

SM Akhtaruzzaman welcomed the CCC survey but pointed out some 'systematic faults' in it.

He also said at the press conference that the survey report was not accurate.