Land grabbing in the name of giving land to the landless
Victims allege, accused term it khas land
THE EASIEST WAY: A signboard at the entrance to the land allegedly grabbed in the name of rehabilitating the landless at Sheikhpura village in Dinajpur Sadar reads 'Bangabandhu Bhumihin Adarsha Gram Samobay Samity'.Photo: STAR
A few people including a freedom fighter at a press conference on Monday alleged that a group of ruling Awami League (AL)-backed people was grabbing their land in the name of rehabilitating the landless people at Sheikhpura village under Dinajpur Sadar upazila. "On January 1 this year, Mirza Mizanur Rahman Nannu, a ward committee secretary of AL, Md Salam, locally known as Salam Driver, and Md Shahin constructed temporary structures on the land and grabbed 14.96 acres of land in the name of 'Bangabandhu Adarsha Gram Samobay Samity' at Sheikhpura village under Dinajpur Sadar upazila. Of it, 2.49 acres belong to me," freedom fighter Md Farhad Ahmed of Balubari village under Dinajpur municipality said at the press conference at Dinajpur Press Club. "Dividing it into plots, they are now selling the land to locals," he said at the press conference, also attended by Md Majaharul Islam, Sekendar Ali, Ashrafuzzaman, Abdul Baten and Abdul Maleque, among the other affected land owners. "As I informed Dinajpur Kotwali police of the matter, they called both the parties to the police station on January 12 to solve the matter but failed. "On January 16, I filed a case with the Additional District Magistrate's Court and the court ordered the officer in charge of Dinajpur police station to appoint someone to supervise the land. But later police sided with the land grabbers," said the freedom fighter. Farhad Ahmed and a few others owned the land around 28 years ago, he said. When contacted, Abdul Kader Zilani, officer in charge (OC) of Dinajpur police station, said, "I acted as per the court's order that asked police to maintain a status quo." Farhad, who is also brother-in-law of Quamrul Huda Helal, organising secretary of Dinajpur district Awami League, met with Md Mostafizur Rahman, state minister of land, and Iqbalur Rahim, lawmaker of Dinajpur-3 constituency, and requested them to see the land grabbing issue. "The state minister spoke with the superintendent of police regarding the matter, but lawmaker Iqbalur Rahim ignored the matter. Nannu is a strong supporter of Iqbalur Rahim," said Farhad Ahmed. Contacted, Iqbalur Rahim said he had directed the OC to take quick action to recover the land. When contacted, Md Salam said, "The area was a khas land and we are distributing it among the landless people. Two hundred landless people have already got plots there." Mirza Mizanur Rahman Nannu, general secretary of AL committee of Sheikhpura ward in Dinajpur Sadar upazila, also claimed that the land was a khas land. "The lawmaker has no involvement with the matter," he added.
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