The PAC at a meeting yesterday also asked the communication ministry to suspend the Barisal divisional accountant immediately.

The PAC rejected the ministry report on the matter and formed a three-member inquiry committee headed by Manjur Quader MP, requesting it to submit its report before the next meeting on September 27.

According to an audit report, the Barisal RHD awarded 21 contracts to some parties in 2001 without publishing any tender notice in newspapers.

PAC Chairman Harun Al Rashid asked Comptroller and Auditor General Asif Ali to suspend Alamgir Hossain Khan, divisional accountant, who was involved in the process of awarding the contracts.

The communication ministry officials, however, claimed that the RHD has already taken action against one of its officials but the lawmakers asked them to take action against others involved also.

The ministry report said it formed two probe committees after the change of the government--one in 2003 and another in 2004--to find out if there was any corruption in the process. The two reports concluded that there was no corruption.

The PAC members rejected the communication ministry report, criticising the ministry for the practice of corruption.

The audit report said deputy assistant engineers Abdul Motaleb Hawlader and Shamsul Huq, Executive Engineer Mahbubul Alam, Caretaker Engineer Khandaker Nurul Arefin and Additional Chief Engineer Shafiul Islam, among others, were involved in the corruption.