Bangladesh News

Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) yesterday demolished a number of illegal structures on government land as part of its ongoing drive to evict land grabbers of Gulshan-Banani-Baridhara Lake in the capital.

The Rajuk officials along with police personnel and a magistrate launched the day’s drive around noon on Mohakhali-Gulshan Link Road.

As the Rajuk tried to knock down the boundary walls of Partex Holdings’ office, Chairman of Partex Group MA Hashem came out of his office along with a number of his employees. Police beat up one of the employees as he forcibly tried to prevent the Rajuk officials and the magistrate from doing their duty.

However, following talks between the magistrate and MA Hashem, the magistrate called off the Rajuk demolition workers.

When asked why the sudden retreat, Magistrate Emdadud Dastagir told The Daily Star, “We have done what we wanted to do.”

MA Hashem, in a statement last night, said he had filed two petitions with the High Court regarding the temporary structures on his land after the Rajuk sent a notice to them asking for the removal of the “unauthorised structure”. The court had ordered Rajuk, on both occasions, not to demolish the walls and structures at his Gulshan land. The magistrate ignored the court order, Hashem claimed.

He also said the Partex Group built a tin shed structure on the land which he bought on 2004 for the office of Partex Holdings.

He claimed the Rajuk authorities conducted the drive in order to damage his political and business reputation.

After bulldozing the walls at Partex Holdings, Rajuk team moved on from there and tore down the boundary wall of a house of High Speed Group on Road-118, Gulshan which was occupying a portion of the bank of the lake.

An employee of High Speed Group, Iftekhar Ahmed, claimed they have a court order regarding the “peaceful possession” of the land.

He, however, said, “Chairman of High Speed Group Mahmudur Rahman stays at the house, but his sister-in-law owns it.”

Rajuk Executive Engineer Ujjal Mallik, who was present during the drive, said the plot owner was illegally occupying the bank of the lake designated for a pavement.

Later, Rajuk demolished another illegal structure on 2.5 katha of government land near house-9 on Road-123.

The Rajuk bulldozed the structures on a plot of land, owner by Sheikh Shahidul, which had encroached parts of the lake.

The Rajuk has a mammoth task in hand as most residents of the area are influential and they have either illegally extended their boundary wall into the lake or have managed allotment of the additional land through dubious deals.