A laudable initiative

The land belonged to he Radha Gobinda Mandir at Kawnia in the city.

On October 17, it was forcibly occupied by Sohel Chowdury, a former leader of Awami League's student front Chhatra League who joined ruling BNP's student wing Jubo Dal recently.

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Sohel was given 108 years' RI by a Barisal court under the PSA in late 2001 in a case for hijacking a car and giving death threat to its owner. The High Court granted him bail.

He also assaulted local journalist Gopal Sarkar and his family members for publishing a news on the illegal occupation of the land.

The incidents created tension among the Hindu community and local journalists, who demanded restoration of the land to the temple's ownership and punishment of the illegal occupant.

The BCC Mayor and the local administration interfered in the matter and took it up at the meeting of the district law and order committee on Tuesday.

The meeting decided that the land be restored to the temple's ownership.

Hours after the decision, local BNP leader Kawsar Biswas and district Jubo Dal joint secretary Syed Akbor Hossain went to the area, freed the property from illegal occupation and handed it over the temple committee. ASP Farhad Hossain was also present during the handover.