HC weighs in to stop construction

The High Court yesterday directed the local administration to act within 24 hours to stop construction work near Mahasthangarh in Bogra to preserve the archaeological site.
The bench of Justice AHM Shamsuddin Chowdhury Manik and Justice Sheikh Md Zakir Hossain also ordered the committee developing a shrine near Mahasthangarh to remove construction equipment within 48 hours.
It directed the authorities concerned to report within five days if its order is being complied with.
The court also issued a rule asking the government to explain within three weeks why its not taking appropriate legal steps to stop construction near Mahasthangarh should not be declared illegal.
It came up with the order and rule following a writ petition filed by Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh (HRPB) seeking necessary directives to protect and preserve the site.
Secretaries to cultural affairs and home ministries, deputy commissioner and superintendent of police in Bogra, custodian of Mahasthangarh Archaeological Museum, officer-in-charge of Shibganj Police Station, president of Mazar Unnayan Committee and Unesco representative in Dhaka have been made respondents to the rule.
The HRPB yesterday filed the writ as public interest litigation on the basis of some reports published recently in various national dailies including The Daily Star that Bogra district administration and Mahasthangarh mazar unnayan committee had started displacing ancient structures at Mahasthangarh to make way for a multi-storey building.
During the hearing, petitioner and lawyer Manzil Murshid said despite restrictions by Antiquities Act 1968 and Building Construction Rules 2008, construction work near Mahasthangarh has continued unabated, spoiling the archaeological beauty of the site.
It shows, he added, the administration's indifference to the importance of protecting Mahasthangarh.
Deputy Attorney General ABM Altaf Hossain and Assistant Attorney General Shahidul Islam Khan represented the government.