Ratan Mani Mohant, photo-collected.
Staff Reporter, Sylhet //

Ratan Mani Mohant alias Bangi Mohant, the main architect of environmental destruction and the mafia of the land-grabbing fraud ring, has not stopped his rampage despite paying lakhs of taka fines. He is wreaking havoc by destroying land like hills (tila). He has had to pay fines of up to 13 lakh taka. But even this did not move his resolve.

Ratan Mani Mohant alias Bangi Mohant, the main architect of environmental destruction by cutting visible hills (tila), has been booked under the Environment Protection Act several times, but he is defending himself by repeatedly paying large fines.

On March 27, 2024, the Sylhet Metropolitan Police (SMP) destroyed the environment by cutting down the hills (hills) of Major Tila, Falguni, and 1263 of Devpur Mouza No. 1269, 12762, and 1263 under Shahparan (RA) Police Station, Islampur area. Later, upon learning the truth of the incident, Inspector Md. Mamunur Rashid of the Sylhet District Environment Department Office filed a case under the Environmental Protection Act as the plaintiff. Case No. 3/83. 15(1) Table 5 of the Bangladesh Environmental Protection Act 1995 (Amended 2010). The main accused in this case is Shri Ratan Moni Mohant (57), son of the deceased Rasmoy Mohant, of Uttara Residential Area (Nathpara), Rajni Niwas, 233/E, and another person. The case is currently ongoing in court.

Earlier, the Department of Environment had fined Ratan Moni Mohant alias Bangi Mohant for cutting a hillock named Birindar in the Dakshin Islampur Falguni area of ​​Devpur Mouza and ordered him to fill the hillock with soil and restore it to its previous condition within a month. But for some mysterious reason, he has not filled the hillock with soil yet. He has indiscriminately destroyed the 140-foot-high hillock.

At one stage, the Department of Environment summoned him in Dhaka and Director (Enforcement) Mohammad Munir Chowdhury delivered this verdict. At that time, the accused Ratan Moni Mohant, who was working as a commissioner of the District Judge Court, appeared in the hearing and frankly confessed to the crime of cutting the hillock. He pleaded to pay the fine and not to take legal action against him in the future.

If he paid the first installment of the fine of 10 lakh taka in cash, the Department of Environment ordered him to pay the remaining amount within the next 1 week. On February 23, 2012, a team led by Mohammad Munir Chowdhury, Director (Enforcement) of the Department of Environment in Dhaka, conducted a raid on this hill and found evidence of hill cutting.

Incidentally, despite numerous allegations of land piracy, illegal earning of crores of taka in a short period of time and hill cutting, the administration has not been able to rein him in. Although at that time a letter was sent to the Sylhet District Commissioner to stop the illegal change of category of the remaining hills/hills, change of land ownership and transfer activities. However, the law has created a reign of terror in Sylhet metropolis by showing the thumbs up to the administration.

A source concerned said that Ratan Moni Mohant is using tactics to buy and sell several lands in the name of his alleged body guard Dhirendra Deb Nath Nayan using power of attorney and is embezzling crores of taka. The documents of many hill-like lands are also attached to that Nayan. As a result, they are being saved through loopholes in the law. If the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and intelligence agencies conduct proper investigations against these people who went from zero to crores during the Awami League regime, evidence of all these misdeeds will come out.

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