RAJUK land cannot be empire of encroachment

The alleged occupation of nearly 11 acres of RAJUK land in Merul Badda, Dhaka, for more than two decades is not merely a story of administrative failure to recover public property. It raises serious questions about the capacity and willingness of state institutions to protect public assets. When government land worth an estimated Tk1,650 crore can, for years, be transformed into a marketplace, wholesale depots, shops and a sprawling settlement, the obvious question is: where was the state?
Official records show that the land was acquired in 1962 by the then Dhaka Improvement Trust for a residential project, and possession was subsequently handed over to the authority. Disputes over possession followed, leading to a series of writ petitions and years of legal proceedings. But the existence of litigation cannot mean that public property may remain under occupation indefinitely. While the courts have a duty to ensure legal remedies, the relevant government authorities have an equally clear responsibility to protect state-owned land.
More troubling are allegations that substantial sums are being collected every month from shops operating on the land, according to a report by a Bengali daily. There are also allegations that hundreds of crores of taka have been collected from thousands of people with promises of permanent shops. If substantiated, this would be far more than a case of unlawful occupation. It could involve allegations of fraud, financial irregularities and the interests of powerful actors. Such claims, however, must be independently investigated rather than treated as established facts.
RAJUK can no longer simply say that the matter is “under litigation”. All records concerning ownership, possession, litigation, leases and allocations must be made publicly available. An impartial investigation must also establish who has been using the land for so long, who has been collecting money from it, and where those funds have gone.
Public land is not anyone’s private property. The longer encroachment persists, the weaker the authority of the state becomes. Ensuring a lawful and speedy resolution, removing illegal occupation and holding those responsible to account are therefore not merely matters for RAJUK. They are a test of good governance itself.