Vast land slipping away from original owners

It is a land of 1,842.3 acres, or 7.5 sq km, sprawling in southern Gobindaganj upazila of Gaibandha.

Once there were 20 villages in the area, 15 populated by ethnic minorities and five by Bangalees. But between 1955 and 1956, the then Pakistan government acquired all the land, by displacing the villagers, to set up a sugar mill.

The deputy commissioner's (DC) office acquired the land for then Pakistan Industrial Development Corporation, which established Rangpur (Mahimaganj) Sugar Mills between 1954 and 1957. The original land owners were given only Tk 8.07 lakh for the vast land. Later in 1962, the DC office, on behalf of the land owners, signed an agreement with the corporation.

The deal stated that 1,842.3 acres of land was acquired for cultivation of sugarcane by the mill authorities. If the land is used for farming any other crops but sugarcane in the future, the corporation shall surrender the land to the government (the DC office), which will later restore the land to its previous condition.

However, the agreement was violated as the mill authorities have leased out most of the land for cultivation of crops like rice, wheat, mustard, tobacco, and maze.

According to the Gobindaganj upazila land office, 1,502 acres of the total 1,842.3 acres was leased out and used for farming the abovementioned crops. A letter of the office, dated June 28, 2015, says only 92-97 acres of the total land was used for cultivation of sugarcane in 2014-15 fiscal year.

The evicted families brought the issue to the attention of the ADC (revenue) of Gaibandha in March 2015. And after investigation, the ADC (revenue) found the allegations true.

However, instead of going by the agreement, the DC office on May 10 this year proposed to the authorities concerned to turn the entire land into a special economic zone.

The 61-member Sahebganj-Bagdafarm Bhumi Uddhar Sangram Committee, a platform of victim families, created in 2014 to recover the land, has protested the move.

On July 1, the mill authorities, Gobindaganj Upazila Nirbahi Officer, and police went to the land where 2,000 landless families had built houses and asked them to move out. Later the mill authorities assaulted the protesters and sued at least 19 of them.

Demanding their rights, the Committee formed a human chain in Gobindaganj on July 10.

Thousand of ethnic minority people and Bangalees have been demonstrating for getting their land back.

(Note: The story is based on a keynote speech presented by researcher Pavel Partha, during a discussion at the capital's Jatiya Press Club yesterday, and supported by official documents.)

DISCUSSION

Speaking at the discussion, rights activists said the state machineries in many cases repressed the underprivileged and marginalised people for protecting the interest of privileged.

They demanded that the government take land from the sugar mill authorities and give it back to the owners.

Eminent rights activist Sultana Kamal said everyone must raise voice against the injustice and repression. “We cannot leave the country at the hands of miscreants.”

Columnist Syed Abul Moksud said the duty of policymakers and public representatives was to protect rights of the underprivileged, but the reverse was happening in Bangladesh.

The state is playing a double standard to people, he viewed.

Veteran left-leaning politician Pankaj Bhattacharya said the administration and bureaucracy was dominated by people, who were not bothered about the rights of general people.

Lawmaker Ushatan Talukder said the state had taken on a repressive character.

The state does not stand beside the people being evicted from their land, added women's rights advocate Khushi Kabir. 

Land rights activist Shamsul Huda said law enforcers were more skilled in repressing people than combating terrorism.

Ethnic minority leaders, among others, also spoke.