HC summons Rajuk boss, officials

17 January 2012, 18:00 PM

Staff Correspondent

The High Court yesterday summoned the Rajuk chief and officials concerned in connection with the incidents of land grabbing of Gulshan Lake and collapse of a portion of the Circuit House road in the city. In a suomoto order, the court directed Rajuk Chairman Nurul Huda, its Ramna zone engineer, and authorised officers of Ramna and Gulshan zones to appear before it on January 24 to explain why the have failed to protect the lake's land and the road. It also directed the officials concerned to take steps so that such incident of collapse does not repeat. The HC bench of Justice AHM Shamsuddin Choudhury Manik and Justice Jahangir Hossain Selim came up with the order following two reports published on The Daily Star and the daily Prothom Alo yesterday, Deputy Attorney General ABM Altaf Hossain told The Daily Star. The Daily Star report said a portion of the Circuit House road collapsed into a 33-foot-deep construction pit Monday as the underground piling adjoining the road caved in. According to the Prothom Alo report, about five Bighas of Gulshan Lake land has been detached from the original lake due to earth filling and construction of structures on that land. The court also issued two separate rules asking the Rajuk chairman and officials to explain in two weeks what steps they have taken to prevent the grabbing of Gulshan Lake's land and why they should not be directed to protect the lake from grabbers. In another rule, the court asked the officials concerned of Rajuk to explain why action should not taken against the owners of building which caused the Circuit House road to collapse and against the persons who are responsible for the collapse.