LOHAGARA, CHATTOGRAM, Mar 11: The Adhanagar Sub-Registry Office in Lohagara has reportedly become a den of corruption, with residents alleging that no deed can be registered without paying hefty unofficial fees. According to locals, the practice is routine: applicants are forced to pay "office charges" ranging from Tk 5,000 to Tk 50,000 per deed, on top of government fees, for registering wills, exchanges, partitions, donations, or any property-related documents.
Residents claim that the sub-registrar deliberately delays work to extract extra payments. Many say the office assistant, Nazim Uddin, colludes with the sub-registrar to ensure that deed writers, applicants, and recipients are compelled to pay these additional fees. The office, which handles roughly 500 deeds per month, is said to be costing applicants millions in unofficial payments each year.
According to witnesses, although the office is supposed to open at 10 a.m., the sub-registrar often arrives late, sometimes not starting work until after 2 p.m., leaving applicants and deed writers waiting for hours. Fees for late registrations after 5 p.m. reportedly attract additional bribes of Tk 3,000 per deed.
A local deed writer, speaking anonymously, said: "Unless an applicant agrees to the 'office charges' demanded by the assistant, no deed will be processed. Even if you pay the government fees, the registration cannot proceed without giving extra money."
Residents provided examples: Sazzad Hossain, seeking a duplicate deed, paid Tk 1,050 in official fees but was forced to give an additional Tk 650. Another, Selim Uddin, said he was asked to pay Tk 20,000 extra for registering a property document, under the guise of "office expenses." Similarly, Nur Mohammad and Jahedul Islam confirmed paying unofficial charges of up to 1 percent of the deed value.
The system appears highly organized: at the end of each day, all deed writers reportedly pay the demanded "office charges" to Nazim Uddin, who reportedly has control over the registration process. In practice, this means the assistant exercises near-total authority over the office operations.
Despite these allegations, Sub-Registrar Arifur Rahman denied any wrongdoing. "I am not involved in any corruption or irregularities. Those who have accused me are the ones truly involved in such practices," he told reporters.
Locals, however, remain frustrated, claiming that the bribery and delays not only burden them financially but also reduce the number of registered deeds, depriving the government of substantial revenue.
