A probe has found massive irregularities in the rental of shops at nine markets of the National Sports Council (NSC), including a case where the government receives as little as Tk 22,000 in monthly rent while as much as Tk 3 lakh is being collected from the tenant. 

Formed following the political changeover in August last year, the investigation committee is now working to assess the total financial loss to the exchequer. Meanwhile, anti-corruption campaigners have described the findings as just "a tip of the iceberg". 

The irregularities found by the committee include shady allotments, shop leases changing hands up to four times, misuse of utilities, unauthorised occupation and discrepancies in financial records.  

The committee submitted its findings to the Ministry of Youth and Sports in November last year. The Daily Star has obtained a copy of the 13-page report, prepared by a three-member panel. 

According to the report, NSC officials and staff cannot shrug off responsibility. 

It said a powerful syndicate comprising NSC officials, stadium administrators and shop owners has been operating illegal activities related to shop allocation and rent collection. 

Meanwhile, Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) has urged the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to intervene and bring the culprits to justice. 

All nine markets are located in the capital and together house 1,075 shops. 

SHOPS CHANGE HANDS, RENTS SPIRAL

The report highlights that many original lessees pay minimal monthly rents to the NSC but rent out the shops at highly inflated rates. 

The repeated transfer of leases -- sometimes to second, third, or even fourth parties -- has pushed up rents by 10 to 15 times the original amount. 

For example, Shamshur Rahman Gong, the original lessee of an 812-square-foot shop at Bangabandhu National Stadium, pays Tk 21,934 per month but has sublet it for Tk 3,00,000 -- a 13-fold increase, from which the NSC earns nothing. 

Similarly, Md Jamal Hossain pays just Tk 4,357 for a 156-square-foot shop at Maulana Bhasani National Hockey Stadium, while the current occupant pays Tk 40,000 per month. 

Such practices are prevalent across all nine NSC-run markets, including the Super Market adjacent to Bangabandhu National Stadium, Volleyball Stadium, Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur, the outer market beside it, the Bir Shreshtha Shaheed Sipahi Mohammad Mustafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur, and the swimming pool market near Bangabandhu Stadium. 

The Daily Star attempted to contact Shamshur Rahman Gong and Md Jamal Hossain, but they could not be reached. 

ALLOCATION COMMITTEE EXPIRED A DECADE AGO

According to the report, the NSC's shop allocation committee, formed in 2013, expired in 2016 and has not been reconstituted since. 

Consequently, all allocations made after 2015 did not follow proper procedure. 

Although NSC policy mandates rent revisions every three years, the committee failed to implement any significant hikes, enabling lessees to profit while government revenue remained unchanged, said the report. 

Revenue records have also raised questions.

The report found mismatches between submitted pay orders, income and expenditure statements, and the balances of bank accounts related to the markets. 

NSC staff were unable to provide satisfactory explanations when questioned by the committee. 

Moreover, 31 shops at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium were allocated temporarily, bypassing the mandatory tender process required for new or vacant premises. 

OTHER ANOMALIES

The report also flagged the NSC Officials and Staffers Cooperative Society, which owns four or more shops across various stadiums -- apparently in violation of the NSC's own policies. 

Apart from financial issues, the probe revealed serious misuse of public infrastructure. 

In Mirpur's Sher-e-Bangla Stadium, stairways have been rented out, water is being used to wash vehicles and electricity is being supplied illegally to unauthorised users. 

At Kamalapur, 16 to 17 families of NSC staff are living illegally on the second floor of Mohammad Mustafa Kamal Stadium.

Besides, the Shop Owners' Association is running an office without formal allocation and is involved in other business activities. 

'IRREGULARITY IS THE NORM HERE'

On 13 April, these reporters visited 13 shops at Bangabandhu National Stadium, Maulana Bhasani Hockey Stadium and Volleyball Stadium.

None of the shopkeepers said they had leased their spaces directly from the NSC through proper channels. 

Instead, they admitted to obtaining them from second, third or even fourth parties. 

Shafiqul Islam, owner of Mobile Space in Bangabandhu National Stadium, said they took the shop on lease from a second party 20 years ago. 

He said they now pay around Tk 30,000 monthly to that party, but he does not know how much the original lessee pays to the NSC. 

"There's no system here. Irregularity is the norm," Islam commented.

Rafiqul Islam Uzzal, owner of Niloy Corporation in the same market, said he took over his shop 18 years ago from a third party and currently pays Tk 50,000 per month in rent. 

He claimed the original leaseholder pays only Tk 2,600 per month to the NSC. 

Nazrul Islam, proprietor of Nahar Enterprise at Maulana Bhasani Stadium, made similar remarks. 

SM Abbas, president of the Dhaka Stadium Shop Owners' Association, defended the practice.

He said, "If someone fails to run a shop after leasing it and transfers it to a second or third party, how is that a crime?" 

NO SHOP ALLOCATION CANCELLED YET

Following the investigation, five committees have been formed by the Ministry of Youth and Sports to look into the irregularities further. 

Md Aminul Islam, secretary of the NSC, told The Daily Star they are working to implement the 13 recommendations in the report, which include automating the allocation process, conducting regular audits and reviewing existing policies. 

However, he said no shop leases have been cancelled so far. 

"If the recommendations are fully implemented, we believe it will curb the government's revenue losses," he told The Daily Star, adding that the total loss could be calculated after further assessment. 

Iftekharuzzaman, executive director of the Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), welcomed the report but said it only scratched the surface. 

Political interference and collusion among NSC officials had allowed the system to persist for years, said Iftekharuzzaman.

"The ministry must now act decisively, not just against frontliners, but also those who enabled and benefited from the irregularities over the years," he said, urging the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to get involved. 

The Daily Star approached Youth and Sports Adviser Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain  and Secretary Rezaul Maksud Jahedi for comments, but to no avail.