Rajuk demolishes wall illegally
Claims wonderland authorities
The Wonderland amusement park authorities yesterday claimed that Rajuk demolished the park without legal basis on Monday.
GM Mostafizur Rahman, managing director of the Wonderland, said this at a press conference at Jatiya Press Club.
Though the High Court asked Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) and Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) to provide an alternative site for the park before removal, Rajuk carried out the drive without complying with the court directive, he said.
He apprehended that the land once freed of amusement park might be turned to a five star hotel.
DCC leased out a portion of Gulshan central playground admittedly through an anomalous process in 1990, as it was not the owner of the land, to M/s Via Media, the owning company of Wonderland.
Mostafizur said the then city mayor Mohammad Hanif had leased out the land through a tender and the deal was renewed every three years until 2005. DCC refused to renew the lease any further, he added.
As Mostafizur filed a writ petition for renewal, the court said DCC's lease was without legal authority and ordered Wonderland authorities on May 24, 2007 to remove all its establishments within six months.
The court directed DCC and Rajuk to provide the lease holder with an alternative site before eviction.
Meanwhile, Rajuk became a party to a public interest litigation filed by one Gulshan resident against commercialisation of a playground and public nuisance by Wonderland.
Rajuk Chairman Md Nurul Huda told The Daily Star on Monday that they had carried out the eviction drive according to the final verdict of Appellate Division. Regarding alternative site, he said that there was no land at their disposal.
Rajuk tore down the main entry gate and frontal boundary wall of the Wonderland to free around four-acre area of public playground and allowed Wonderland two days' time to remove expensive rides and machineries from inside the park.
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