The High Court on Tuesday asked the commerce ministry to inform it today about the actual owner of the land on Hatirjheel Lake in Dhaka where 14-storey Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exports’ Association building is situated.
The bench of Justice AHM Shamsuddin Chowdhury and Justice Sheikh Md Zakir Hossain also asked the ministry to explain in what capacity it had given the land to the BGMEA.
The court passed the order after deputy attorney general Mostafa Zaman Islam had submitted Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha’s reply to the rule the court issued earlier.
In the reply, Rajuk said that the Export Promotion Bureau was the owner of the land.
On September 8, 1998, the EPB allowed the BGMEA to use the land and on certain conditions, the EPB also allowed the BGMEA to build multi-storey building on the land. Before the contract, the EPB took permission from the ministry as the EPB is an institution of the commerce ministry, Rajuk said in the reply.
Mostafa also said that the BGMEA had constructed the building without approval of Rajuk.
The BGMEA, however, submitted a design of the building to Rajuk during the construction but Rajuk later fined the BGMEA Tk 12,50,000 as its proposed plan was not followed in constructing the building, Mostafa said, adding that the BGMEA was also ordered to dismantle the portions of the building built in breach of the plan.
On October 3, 2010, the bench of Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury and Justice Farah Mahbub issued the rule suo moto asking the government, Rajuk and the BGMEA to explain why punitive action would not be taken against the officials concerned responsible for the construction of the building without Rajuk approval.
As the matter came up for hearing on February 22, the bench led by Justice Shamsuddin Chowdhury appointed seven lawyers amici curiae (friends of court) for their expert opinion on the matter.
On Tuesday, the court heard former attorney general Fida M Kamal, who was among the seven lawyers appointed amici curiae.
The hearing will resume today.
Courtesy of New Age
