Dhaka: Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan on Monday urged Jasod MP Moin Uddin Khan Badal and Jatiya Party MP Ziauddin Ahmed Bablu to withdraw their statements over the recruitment in Chittagong seaport.

Making a statement under section 300 of the Rules of Procedure, the minister claimed that both the MPs provided untrue information on Sunday in the House over the recruitment of ‘Laskars’ at the seaport, reports the UNB.

‘Some 92 persons were elected for the Laskar posts. Of them, only two persons are from Chittagong and the remaining 90 persons from another district... people of Chittagong will not mind if the remaining 90 persons are recruited from the entire country, not a district,’ Shajahan quoted Badal as saying.

The minister also quoted Bablu as saying, ‘I (Bablu) don’t know why all recruitment tests of Chittagong seaport take place in Dhaka...Being local MPs, people come to us to recommend jobs for them, but we can’t give them.’

About Badal’s remark, Shajahan Khan said his statement is completely untrue and misleading. ‘It is not 92 persons rather 85 persons were given job of Laskar,’ the shipping minister said.

‘I gave jobs to 85 persons. If we want to follow the district quota, people of Chittagong district will not get any job in district quota for the next 30 years (in the seaport),’ he said.

He said 23 persons were recruited from Chittagong district and 29 from the greater Chittagong to Laskar posts this time, while the remaining persons from 23 other districts.

Noting that Monsur Ali, son of Sirazur Rahman was given job on request of Badal elected from Chittagong-8, the minister said, ‘I don’t know how he (Badal) could make the allegation.’

‘As the recruitment is done on the basis of viva test, our many MPs and ministers request us and we give (jobs) accordingly,’

He said some 2,100 persons were recruited in the Chittagong seaport after the Awami league government came in power in 2009. No controversy was raised in the previous recruitments.

About Bablu’s remarks, the minister said Bablu elected from Chittagong-9 has never requested him for any job. But his party’s chairman HM Ershad MP requested for a job and a job was given on Ershad’s request.

Justifying for holding recruitment tests in Dhaka, Shajahan said some 74,000 persons applied for an upcoming recruitment test. Chittagong has no capacity of sitting arrangement to hold a test with huge applicants in a day.

The minister asked the MPs not to mislead the people providing untrue information. ‘You should withdraw your statement.’