State to appeal in Moghbazar FF’s land case
Court Correspondent: Dhaka, Apr-10,
An Appellate Division bench led by Chief Justice Hasan Foez Siddique today granted leave to appeal on behalf of the state against the High Court’s verdict on the acquisition of a freedom fighter’s land in the capital’s Moghbazar.
Attorney General AM Amin Uddin and Additional Attorney General Mehedi Hasan Chowdhury represented the state while Lawyer Sheikh Awsafur Rahman Bulu represented the petitioner.
According to the case statement, Birendranath Roy handed over his 19.5 Katha land situated in the Moghbazar area to Sirajul Haque with the power of attorney in 1945.
Later, Sirajul Haque made a mutation in his own name by submitting the ‘Khajna’ or rent of the land in 1965-66. But later, the government filed a case in 1999 demanding rent for the land saying that no rent was paid.
On July 25 of that year, freedom fighter Sirajul Haque occupied the land paying a rent of Tk 2,792.
After Haque’s death in 2006, the state filed a case seeking amendment of the ‘Khatian’ of the land. Later on June 23, 2009, Ramna Land Office sent a notice for the acquisition of the land.
Then on November 15 of that year, another notice was sent from the Ramna land office to the landowner stating that- “BCS (Administration) Welfare Multipurpose Cooperative Society Limited needs the land for public welfare
activities and construction of permanent infrastructure for housing facilities.”
A Gazette of land acquisition was also issued immediately after the notice. Shortly after the gazette was issued, the administration evicted Haque’s family.
Maleka Siraj, wife of Sirajul Haque, and her five children filed a writ petition with the High Court on February 25, 2010, challenging the validity of the gazette.
Following the hearing of the writ petition, the High Court 2011 quashed the gazette and declared the land acquisition illegal. The state appealed against the judgment of the High Court (leave to appeal) in the same year.
The Appellate Division Chamber Court then upheld the order of the High Court.
Later, when the full verdict of the High Court was published, the state appealed in 2012.
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