Rajshahi, June 29 (V7N) — A sudden and steep rise in sand prices at the Premtoli sand dock in Godagari upazila of Rajshahi has caused distress among local traders and consumers. Allegations have surfaced that the price hike—from Tk 7,500 to Tk 9,000 per truckload—is being driven by the brother of notorious fugitive and alleged hundi kingpin Mokhlesur Rahman Mukul, widely known as "Hundi Mukul."
 
Business operators claim that Md. Babu, Mukul’s brother, has unilaterally raised sand prices by Tk 1,500 per truckload over the past three days, leaving contractors and individual buyers in financial strain. While the price of coarse construction sand, including truck rental, was previously Tk 7,500, it is now being sold for Tk 9,000—forcing many to halt ongoing projects or sell at a loss to retain clients.
 
Contractors involved in residential and small-scale infrastructure projects say they had agreements based on the older pricing, and this unexpected hike has disrupted their operations. "We’re either incurring losses or suspending deliveries," said one supplier. "The situation has left both traders and the general public hostage to a price regime controlled by one family."
 
Md. Babu defended the price hike in a phone interview, citing the ongoing monsoon season as the cause. "It’s raining continuously, and the cost of extracting sand has gone up. That’s why prices were adjusted," he said.
 
However, deeper concerns surround the identity of the man behind the business. Mokhlesur Rahman Mukul, alias Hundi Mukul, is currently in hiding and faces multiple legal cases filed on August 5, 2020. Once a modest grocer in Rajshahi’s Kashiadanga area, Mukul is now allegedly the owner of assets worth more than a thousand crore taka, amassed through cross-border hundi operations and money laundering.
 
Investigations reveal that Mukul owns at least four residential properties in Dhaka and Rajshahi, two luxury vehicles including a Tk 1.5 crore black Pajero, and nearly 40 bighas of land—20 of which are within Rajshahi city, valued at over Tk 200 crore. He also owns hotels in Saudi Arabia, one in Mecca and another in Medina, allegedly purchased with laundered money.
 
Sources suggest Mukul has deep political connections. Reports claim he gifted a Pajero to former MP Asaduzzaman Asad in exchange for favorable access to sand docks in the Paba area. Mukul is also known to have close ties with top Awami League leaders in Rajshahi, including former city mayor and presidium member AHM Khairuzzaman Liton and city Awami League general secretary Dablu Sarkar.
 
A confidential 2018 list released by the Police Headquarters' Special Crime Management Division named Mokhlesur Rahman Mukul among the top hundi and narcotics traffickers in the Rajshahi region. Investigators allege that Mukul defrauded his former Indian partner, notorious smuggler Enamul Haque, of nearly Tk 500 crore, setting off his meteoric rise from local trader to alleged crime boss.
 
Despite repeated attempts, Voice7 News was unable to contact Mukul for comment, as his mobile phone remains switched off. Locals in Kashiadanga still express disbelief at his transformation. "He used to run a grocery shop here. Now he’s known as ‘Hundi Mukul’—the man with palaces and luxury cars," said longtime resident Anisuzzaman.
 
With prices spiraling and public frustration mounting, local sand traders and consumers are urging authorities to step in. “This is no longer just a pricing issue; it’s about unchecked control, illegal enrichment, and public exploitation,” said one contractor.
 
Calls are growing for an official investigation and regulatory oversight of sand trading in the region to ensure fair pricing and accountability—especially when powerful fugitives continue to exert influence from behind the scenes.
 
END/MRR/SMA/