Petition argues publicly funded buses should be returned to regular routes to serve ordinary

TDS Desk:

A Supreme Court lawyer today filed a writ petition with the High Court seeking an order to stop the leasing or renting of Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC) buses to government offices, including ministries, statutory bodies and local authorities, arguing that the buses should instead be used for public transport.

Advocate Md Mahmudul Hasan Mamun filed the petition as a public interest litigation, naming the cabinet secretary, secretaries of the Road Transport and Bridges Ministry and Finance Division, and the BRTC chairman as respondents.

The petitioner said Sections 5 and 22 of the Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation Act, 2020 require BRTC buses to be operated in the public interest as public transport. He argued that leasing the buses to government institutions to transport their officials and employees therefore goes beyond BRTC’s legal authority.

He also cited the BRTC Bus Lease Policy, 2007, saying Clause 3 allows only experienced commercial transport operators to lease buses, while Clause 5(17) prohibits lessees from transferring buses to third parties.

According to the petition, leasing BRTC buses to government institutions also violates citizens’ rights to equality before the law and equal protection under Articles 27 and 31 of the Constitution.

The petitioner further argued that keeping a large number of publicly funded buses engaged in transporting government officials deprives ordinary passengers, particularly women and students, of public transport services.

He also referred to the “circular flow of income” and “fiscal multiplier effect”, arguing that government institutions renting buses from BRTC merely circulates public money within government entities rather than generating wider economic activity.

The petitioner contended that hiring buses from private operators could instead support employment and broader economic activity.

The writ petition seeks a rule asking why the leasing or renting of BRTC buses to government and autonomous institutions should not be declared illegal and stopped.

It also seeks directions to immediately withdraw all BRTC buses currently being used for government transport and return them to regular commercial routes for public use.

The petition is expected to come up for hearing before a High Court bench soon, petitioner Mahmudul said.