An Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) in Natore purchased a sacrificial cow from the cattle market and transported it using the government vehicle assigned to her yesterday (5 June).
Photos of the incident have caused a stir on social media.
Ha-Meem Tabassum Prova, UNO of Natore's Bagatipara upazila, had gone to Rajshahi to attend a meeting at the office of the divisional commissioner.
On her way back, she bought a cow from the Rajshahi City cattle market and transported it in the government vehicle, sparking widespread criticism on social media, particularly Facebook.
According to sources, a meeting was held at the Rajshahi Divisional Commissioner's office yesterday morning regarding the issue of excess weight being charged by wholesalers during mango trade in the Rajshahi region.
Tabassum Prova attended the meeting as a representative of Bagatipara Upazila. She has also been serving as the Acting Assistant Commissioner (Land) of Bagatipara.
She attended the meeting using the assistant commissioner's double-cabin pickup vehicle. The meeting concluded around noon. After that, she went to the Rajshahi City cattle market and purchased a cow for Eid-ul-Adha festival.
The cow was placed in the rear cabin of the vehicle, while the UNO herself sat in the front cabin. In this manner, she transported the cow from Rajshahi to Natore using the government vehicle, sources said.
Suman Ali, driver of the vehicle, said, "After the meeting, sir went to the market to buy a cow. We brought it back to Bagatipara in the vehicle. Sir was with us and gave her permission to load the cow onto the vehicle. If there's anything to say about this, sir will be the one to speak."
When asked about the incident, UNO Prova said, "There is no cattle market in Bagatipara Upazila. I have to celebrate Eid here. I had to make a sacrifice. Even after inquiring around, I couldn't find a cow nearby. So, on the way back from the meeting, I bought a medium-sized cow weighing around 2-2.5 maunds from Rajshahi."
When questioned whether it was appropriate to use a government vehicle for this purpose, she said, "I didn't carry anything illegal in the vehicle. It was just one cow, and there was space in the rear cabin, so I loaded it. We often transport confiscated items in that same space while conducting mobile court operations. But now, it has become a topic of discussion because it was a cow."
However, Additional Divisional Commissioner (General) Mohammad Habibur Rahman said that transporting a cow in a government vehicle was not appropriate.
"This is not right, it is condemnable. We do not expect such behaviour. We will look into the matter. Steps will be taken to ensure that such incidents do not happen in the future," he said.
Source: The Business Standard