Saiful Alam Milon, MP from Dhaka-12, today sharply criticised Road Transport and Bridges Minister Sheikh Robiul Alam’s claim that this year’s Eid journey was “comfortable.”

He raised the issue on a point of order in the parliament, questioning how many more lives would have to be lost before the minister felt “any embarrassment”.

“We follow the Westminster parliamentary tradition. In Britain, he would have already resigned by now. Will the road transport minister resign? Will he even consider resignation?” he asked.

Referring to the minister’s statement made yesterday, the Jamaat-e-Islami lawmaker said the reality of the so-called comfortable journey painted a starkly different picture.

According to a Bangladesh Road Transport Authority report, 170 people died during the Eid holiday period, while Jatri Kalyan Samity put the toll at 370, he said. He also cited an incident in which a bus sank in the river at a ferry station.

“Yet, our transport minister said the journey was comfortable,” the MP said.

He further criticised compensation for victims, saying, “For those who died, only 25,000 taka was given. For the injured, 15,000 taka.”

Earlier, Jamaat MP Shahjahan Chowdhury also spoke on a point of order, raising concerns over the conduct of the question-and-answer session in the House.

He added that the speaker plays a central role in regulating both questions and ministerial responses to ensure balanced participation.

“It would be better if the law minister answered questions relevant to his ministry. We can accept the law minister’s statement. But when the home minister speaks, differences arise. I request the speaker to allow ministers to respond according to relevance,” he said.