The Supreme Court today allowed the Ashiyan City Development Limited to carry on its housing project on 33 acres near the Dhaka airport area.
The Appellate Division of the SC, however, scrapped a a verdict of the High Court that in a review petition had declared the Ashiyan City’s housing project legal.
A six-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan disposed of two appeals filed by the government and eight rights organisations against the HC verdict with observations.
The SC did not disclose the observations today. The observations can be known after the full text of the judgement is released. The five other judges of the bench are Justice Burhanuddin, Justice M Enayetur Rahim, Justice Md Ashfaqul Islam, Justice Md Abu Zafor Siddique and Justice Jahangir Hossain Selim.
Rights organisations’ lawyer Minhazul Haque Chowdhury told The Daily Star that Ashiyan City can run its housing project on the 33 acres of land following the Appellate Division judgement. Next steps will be taken after receiving the full text of the verdict, he added.
Following a review petition filed by Ashiyan City, the HC on August 16, 2016 scrapped its earlier (January 16, 2014) judgement that had declared the Ashiyan City housing project illegal.
Then the government, and eight rights organisations including Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BEA), Ain O Salish Kendra (ASK), Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST) filed two separate appeals with the Appellate Division challenging the HC verdict of August 16, 2016.
Today, the Appellate Division delivered the verdict on the appeals.
Senior lawyers Fida M Kamal, Prabir Neogi, Syeda Rizwana Hasan and Minhazul Haque Chowdhury appeared for the rights organisations, Additional Attorney General SK Md Morshed argued for the government while senior lawyers Md Qumrul Haque Siddique and Ahsanul Karim accompanied by Raghib Rauf Chowdhury Redwan Ahmed Runjib placed arguments for Ashiyan City Development Ltd before the Appellate Division during hearing of the appeals.
Source : Daily Star
