A CNG filling station in Dumuria upazila of Khulna has been sealed for allegedly selling auto gas, an LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) variant used in motor vehicles, in the name of cooking gas by filling it illegally into the cylinders of renowned company Bashundhara and others.

In a drive, Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Muhammad Al Amin on Tuesday shuttered Suraiya Auto LPG Filling Station, located at the city bypass intersection, fined Tk2 lakh, and seized equipment used for cross-filling activities.

Sources at the district administration said the filling station had been scamming people for a long time using LPG cylinders of Bashundhara and other companies by filling those with gas used for vehicles, eyeing to make extra profits and evade duties.

The closure of the filling station comes after locals caught a pickup van laden with cross-filled LPG cylinders.

On information, police and officials from the district administration, Department of Explosives, and Directorate of National Consumers' Right Protection reached the filling station and took legal action against the establishment as they found evidence of illegal activities.

Kabir Azam of Bashundhara LP Gas Ltd said the price of cooking gas is costlier than the gas used in vehicles. Moreover, the cylinders seized during the drive were filled with 9kg-10kg of gas instead of 12kg.

The cross-filling activities may cause accidents, he said, adding that consumers are also cheated here.

UNO Al Amin said the filling station owners stored empty LP gas cylinders of several companies, including Bashundhara, and marketed those by filling gas used in vehicles in a risky process, depriving the government of revenue and increasing risk of accidents.

Earlier, police also found similar irregularities in two other filling stations in the area. A general diary was filed in this connection.