A mobile court has fined "Sarkar Agro" an unauthorized company in Gazipur Tk 3 lakh for producing fake animal feed and marketing it using counterfeit Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI) logos.
Led by Gazipur Executive Magistrate Ahmed Ali Adnan, the raid was conducted on Sunday at a multi-storey building in the Chandana-Chowrasta area. Officials from the Department of Fisheries and BSTI assisted in the operation.
Investigations revealed that Sarkar Agro systematically defrauded local farmers. Operating primarily through a Facebook page with no physical address listed, the company sold substandard products using fake BSTI credentials. They also ran deceptive advertisements claiming their feed was imported from developed countries.
During the raid, officials phoned the company's owner, asking him to appear at the scene. In a brazen response, the owner dismissively told the magistrate to "eat cold food and leave" refusing to cooperate.
Magistrate Adnan confirmed that clear evidence of multiple irregularities was found. The Tk 3 lakh penalty was imposed under the Fisheries and Animal Feed Act, the BSTI Act and the Consumer Rights Protection Act.
Gazipur Sadar Senior Upazila Fisheries Officer Md. Abu Sama stated that authorities had been searching for the elusive online operation for a long time.
"They sold these fake products online while hiding their actual factory address" Sama explained. "We finally tracked them down today based on a tip-off from local journalists. Such drives against fraudulent businesses will continue."
