BANGLADESH

The High Court yesterday directed Dhaka City Corporation to remove all structures from the car parks in the city's Karwan Bazar within two months.

The verdict came on a writ petition filed on April 12, 2010 by Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh following a report in The Daily Star under the headline "Car park lost to market".

DCC had allowed setting up of over 65 shops at the car parks, which would worsen traffic congestion in and around the busy commercial area of the capital. According to the report, construction of the shops was almost complete.

Responding to the public interest litigation, the HC on April 12 of that year ordered the DCC authorities to maintain status quo on any construction at the car parks in Karwan Bazar. It also issued a rule upon the DCC to explain why construction at the sites should not be declared illegal.

Besides, the court sought an explanation from DCC as to why it should not be directed to demolish the illegal structures, if any, at the places meant for car parking, in order to ease traffic jam in the area.

During yesterday's hearing, petitioner's counsel Manzill Murshid told the court that people face severe traffic jam on the VIP road near Karwan Bazar as the car parks are eaten up by shops and other structures.

DCC must not take steps to serve anybody's business interests to the detriment of public welfare, he added.

An HC bench of Justice AHM Shamsuddin Choudhury Manik and Justice Jahangir Hossain Selim then came up with the verdict. It also declared illegal the DCC's decision to construct the shops.

The DCC authorities did not make any reply to the HC rule, but Assistant Attorney General Yeadia Zaman represented the government, Manzill said.