Allegations have been levelled against NCP MP of Noakhali-6 (Hatiya) constituency Abdul Hannan Masud that he delayed a ferry carrying Eid holidaymakers returning from their homes to their work stations by nearly two hours.

The incident triggered a heated altercation on the ferry between the passengers, the MP, and the ferry authorities.

The incident took place on Sunday (May 31) night on the ferry Mahananda, while it was anchored at the Nalchira ferry ghat in Hatiya upazila.

According to locals and passengers, the ferry left Chairman Ghat at 4:15pm on Sunday and reached Nalchira Ghat at 5:45pm. Normally, after loading and unloading passengers, the ferry is scheduled to depart for Chairman Ghat (connecting to the Noakhali mainland) around 7:00pm. However, it did not leave until nearly 8:45pm.

Hundreds of passengers were left waiting in the sweltering heat after motorcycles and other vehicles were not allowed to board the ferry once it was unloaded.

Passengers said the ferry did not depart on time because ferry staff claimed it was waiting for an MP to arrive.

“It is deeply unfortunate if hundreds of people have to suffer for a single public representative,” one aggrieved woman said, adding that delays risked missing night buses to Dhaka, Chattogram, Cumilla and Feni.

​Another passenger, Mahbubur Rahman, said, “Since the ferry didn’t leave on time, I will miss my night coach to Dhaka and won't be able to reach my office on time on Monday.”

Muzammel Haque, master of the ferry Mahananda, said the vessel was delayed by about an hour and a half.

“Delaying a ferry for a member of parliament, a VIP, does not really count as a delay. Only the passengers can say why they became upset over this,” he said.

Muzammel said the MP later addressed the crowd.

The master of the ferry maintained that while they were ready to leave on time, the departure was slightly delayed under instructions from higher authorities.

​Meanwhile, several followers of Hannan Masud claimed on Facebook that the MP had visited the ferry ghat to inspect irregularities. They alleged that a certain quarter was misrepresenting the situation.

Contacted, Hannan Masud said a group with vested interests and a corrupt syndicate deliberately created a chaotic situation at the ferry ghat.

“That group keeps vehicles waiting for hours instead of boarding them, causing traffic jams near the ghat. They misled passengers again yesterday, making people suffer to politically malign me and portray me as a failure,” he said.

He stressed that ferries should run strictly on schedule, without waiting for VIPs or anyone outside the rules, and warned of legal action against syndicates harassing travellers.

Hannan Masud added that he himself had to wait about 45 minutes at the ghat, claiming propaganda was being spread about the incident for political purposes.