Under the influence of powerful Awami League leaders, 15 companies captured about 90% of the Roads and Highways Department’s (RHD) projects, sidelining over 1,100 other contractors.
One of them, Toma Construction Ltd, had no prior experience with RHD works before the Awami League came to power, yet went on to secure contracts worth thousands of crores of taka.
Toma’s rise is closely linked to Mirza Azam, Awami League’s central organising secretary, who was reportedly involved with the company despite his public denials.
Records show Toma ranked 13th among contractors in terms of work volume in RHD. It also bagged major projects in rail, local government, public works, and other sectors during the AL regime. The company’s chairman, Ataur Rahman Bhuiyan Manik, was a vice-president of Noakhali district Awami League.
From the Moghbazar-Mouchak flyover to Dhaka University’s ‘Bijoy Ekattor’ hall and multiple highway expansions, Toma’s projects have been marred by delays, inflated costs, and allegations of substandard work.
For instance, the Moghbazar flyover’s cost ballooned from Tk334 crore to Tk1,229 crore, with nine fatalities recorded during construction due to poor safety measures. The Dhaka University hall project saw land illegally occupied for years despite protests and court orders.
Toma also secured the Khulna coal power plant access road project worth Tk120 crore, reportedly after tender specifications were altered to fit its eligibility. It grabbed Tk356 crore Uttara flat construction work under RAJUK, despite repeated warnings about low quality. In the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant project, Toma joined as a partner despite having no prior experience, allegedly after Azam’s intervention.
Wherever there was a lucrative government contract — be it roads, railways, or even a World Bank-funded silo project — Toma’s name appeared, often followed by cost escalations. In many cases, extra spending was allegedly siphoned off, with Mirza Azam benefiting significantly.
Critics say Toma’s history includes fatal construction accidents, unsafe work conditions, inflated budgets, tender manipulation, and political favouritism — yet it continued to receive billion-taka contracts thanks to the political protection of Mirza Azam.
BP English/ARK
