A faction of the Bangladesh Petrol Pump Owners Association (BPPOA) has threatened to go on a strike across the country if their 6-point demand, including raising commissions on the sales of petroleum by 7 percent, are not met soon.

“We won’t receive any consignment of petroleum fuels from government depots from February 17 if our demands are not accepted,” said Syed Sazzadul Karim Kabul, president of a faction of the BPPOA, at a press conference at Dhaka Reporters Unity (DRU) on Wednesday.

Secretary General of the BPPOA faction Mizanur Rahman Ratan and other leaders were present on the occasion.

They said the Energy Division and Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation have unilaterally raised the commissions on sales by Tk 0.20 per litre against their longstanding demand for raising Tk 1.60 per litre.

READ: Fuel Price hike: Now petrol pump, tank-lorry owners demand rise in commissions, transportation fares

According to them, this is unacceptable as their other expenditures have excessively gone up and the government has also raised the price of diesel by Tk 15 per litre.  

Their other demands are cancellation of the existing provisions for taking licences from different government bodies except Department of Explosive and Trade License Issuing Bodies, issuing gazette notification on declaration of sales’ commission, cancellation of the existing provision for taking lease of lands used for entrance of petrol pumps from the Roads and Highways Department and building adequate restrooms for tank-lorry workers at fuel depots.

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Meanwhile, Mohammad Nazmul Haque, president of another faction of the BPPOA, in a statement denounced the demands and the press conference arranged by the Kabul-led faction.

He called the leaders of other factions as expelled members of the organisation.