The aerial view of the proposed golf course area in Suhrawardi Udyan. Photo: Anisur Rahman

Urban experts and eminent personalities have strongly criticised the government move to hand over a huge chunk of land at Suhrawardi Udyan to Dhaka Club for developing a golf course and demanded immediate cancellation of the decision.

They described the move as "improper" and "unacceptable".

The 64-acre ground, which has immense historic importance, has been an open public space for a long time but the government has decided to hand over 25 acres of land to the private club for developing and maintaining a golf course there.

Eminent urban expert Prof Nazrul Islam, chairman of University Grants Commission and honorary chairman of Centre for Urban Studies, said, "We are against the decision. Allowing an important public space for an exclusive sport of a few people is unacceptable."

Terming the idea of developing a golf course in the centre of a city like Dhaka "absurd", Nazrul said there are golf courses at Kurmitola and Savar and if needed, the government can set up more at suitable places.

"Although we regularly hold Urban Development Committee meetings, we were not aware that such a move was taken," said Prof Nazrul, also a member of the committee.

SM Shahjahan, former adviser to the caretaker government and vice-president of environmentalist group Bangladesh Paribesh Andolon (Bapa), said golf is not a sport of the common people but of a very small section of the community.

"Giving permission to use the ground for a golf course is not appropriate," he said, adding, "Interest of the greater public should have taken precedence over any other consideration."

Noted academician and environmentalist Prof Serajul Islam Choudhury said the government decision to permit use of a public space for an exclusive elite purpose is not only unexpected but also shocking.

"This is unimaginable and very irritating...The government should immediately cancel its decision," he said.

Besides being a historically important place in more than one way, Suhrawardi Udyan is one of the very few open green spaces in the capital, he added.

It was Suhrawardi Udyan where people of Bangladesh--then East Pakistan--spontaneously protested the haughty assertion of Muhammad Ali Jinnah that "Urdu and only Urdu shall be the state language of Pakistan" at a public meeting in March 1948, Prof Seraj said.

It is the very place where Bangladesh's independence was mentioned in the historic public speech of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on March 7, 1971, and this is where the Pakistani occupation forces surrendered to the allied forces in Bangladesh's Liberation War on December 16 the same year.

"This is not a place for a golf course but an open space for the common masses," said Seraj.

Comparing Suhrawardi Udyan with the Hyde Park of London, he said if an open and centrally located park like Suhrawardi Udyan does not have protection, it is easily understandable how unprotected other common spaces are.

Institute of Architects Bangladesh President Mubasshar Hussain said it has been inappropriate on the government's part not to consult with those involved with the planning, development and beautification of the city and above all the civil society before taking the decision.

"A sport of a few must not get priority over the interest of the general masses," said Mubasshar, who himself is a sports organiser.

Almost none in the sports arena or of those involved with the city's development and planning was aware of the move, he said.

The government is supposed to inform the Urban Development Committee of any development or beautification move as the committee is mandated to oversee all development work in Dhaka city.

"But the committee was unaware of the move," said Mubasshar, who is also a member of the committee.

Requesting anonymity, an expert on urban issues said successive governments have plundered the scarce open public spaces in the capital and allocated designated parkland for setting up religious establishments and running moneymaking businesses by powerful coteries and elite groups.

Prof Muntassir Mamun, an authority on the history of Dhaka city, said both the golf course and Shishu Park in Suhrawardi Udyan should be removed somewhere else immediately for the sake of history and the people's access.

The construction of Swadhinata Stambha, a memorial to commemorate Bangabandhu's decisive public speech of March 7, in the park has remained stalled for several years.

Muntassir said the exact site where Bangladesh's independence was mentioned and Pakistani forces surrendered is located in the enclosed area of the Shishu Park.

It is true that there was a golf course in Suhrawardi Udyan, but there has hardly been any golf course activity during the past 25-30 years, he added.

According to sources, Dhaka Club authorities had applied to the public works ministry for the land. Public Works Department (PWD) signed a contract with the club in this regard on June 18 following a ministry decision.

PWD Chief Engineer Abdullah-Al-Safi said the government has only given the permission on a temporary basis to use the ground as a golf course. The open space is under the authority of the PWD but it is a decision of the higher authority, Safi added.

Several attempts by this correspondent to speak to the public works secretary for his comments failed as he was unavailable and messages left with his office remained unanswered.

Earlier, Dhaka Club President Selim Bhuiyan said the government has not leased out the land to them. "The government has just entrusted the club with proper maintenance of the park," he said.

Selim further said they do not have any authority to bring any changes to the park. "Since one of the historical monuments stands close to the park, things should be in proper order there," he said, adding that the park will remain open to all like before.