As the parliamentary standing committee on shipping ministry discussed the purchase issue for second time at its meeting, Shipping Minister Akbar Hossain argued with the committee members whether they have jurisdiction to discuss it.

"The committee has no jurisdiction to discuss the issue. I haven't told anything about this before. I have the authority to purchase the ship," sources quoted the shipping minister as telling the meeting.

In reply, Committee Chairman Golam Mohammad Siraj said, "The parliamentary body is a part of the Jatiya Sangsad and it has jurisdiction to see whether any irregularities are taking place in the ministry's activities."

Members of the committee supported the chairman while rejecting outright the minister's comment. Taking a lot of flak from the lawmakers, Akbar Hossain later expressed regret for his words, meeting sources said.

He however claimed there has been nothing wrong in the process of purchasing the ship. The lawmakers then questioned why the project proposals had been changed twice.

The committee at its meeting on March 8 blasted the shipping minister for a "mysterious" increase in the cost of building an ocean-going vessel.

It described as "mysterious and dubious" the 43 percent increase in the cost over the first project proposal.

The overall price of the ship at first was fixed at Tk 91 crore but the ministry raised the figure to Tk 98 crore in the second to Tk 130 crore in the third tender.

The parliamentary body yesterday asked the ministry not to exceed Tk 100 crore to purchase the ship and float international tender for it.

"A board of Bangladesh Shipping Corporation has concluded that purchasing the ship at a cost over Tk 100 crore will not be financially viable," the committee chairman said at the meeting.

Ruling BNP lawmaker and committee member Abul Hossain Khan said the ministry must maintain transparency in making the purchase.

As the shipping minister claimed that his ministry has all along been keeping the purchase process transparent, the committee asserted that no one but the shipping minister will be responsible if any financial irregularity takes places in the process.

Emerging from the meeting held at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban, Akbar Hossain told reporters that the ministry will purchase two ships--one new and one old--through open tender.

About the ministry's initiative to privatise the New Mooring container terminal in the face of fierce opposition from the Chittagong City Corporation mayor, the committee chairman said they hope the mayor will reconsider his stance.

He said the mayor had commented that a Mafia gang will capture the terminal if it is privatised. "The terminal is now under the grip of Mafia. We hope the situation will change after privatisation," he said.

"Committee member and Awami League lawmaker Fazle Karim Chowdhury has been asked to communicate with the mayor and request him to change his position," the committee chairman said.