Legal notice calls for halt to hilsa exports to India for Durga Puja

A lawyer has issued a legal notice calling for a halt to the Ministry of Commerce’s approval to export 3,000 tonnes of hilsa fish to India for Durga Puja.

Supreme Court Advocate Md Mahmudul Hasan sent the notice on Sunday.

The commerce secretary, fisheries and water resources secretary, the chairman of the National Board of Revenue, and the chief controller of the Office of Imports and Exports have been made the respondents in the notice, reports bdnews24.com. 

On Saturday, two weeks before the start of the major Hindu festival of Durga Puja, the Ministry of Commerce approved the export of 3,000 tonnes of hilsa to India.

According to Mahmudul's notice, hilsa is available in different countries of the world including Bangladesh, India, and Myanmar. India has an extensive coastline, where hilsa is widely produced. Considering this, there is no need to import hilsa fish from Bangladesh to India, he said, but India still mainly imports hilsa from the Padma River in Bangladesh.

Indian agents and fish exporters in Bangladesh stock hilsa from the Padma River throughout the year and export the fish to India with the permission of the Bangladesh government, and in some cases 'illegally smuggle' across the border, the notice alleged.

The notice also says that, due to export and ‘smuggling’ to India, the people of Bangladesh cannot get Padma River hilsa in the market and have to buy sea hilsa, which is not as tasty.

The notice also said that, according to Bangladesh’s export policy from 2021-24, hilsa is not freely exportable. In this situation, the Ministry of Commerce has acted against the interests of the people of Bangladesh by allowing the export of hilsa fish to India, Mahmudul claimed.

The petition then requests authorities to take necessary measures to stop the export of hilsa to India within three days of receiving the notice and threatens to file a writ case in the High Court to take action in this regard.