Confirming the numbers, BWDB’s Executive Engineer (Dhaka Operations and Maintenance Division-II) Dewan Ainul on Monday told the Dhaka Tribune: “Three of the structures were owned by Haji Salim. However, when contacted, Dhaka 7 lawmaker Haji Mohammad Salim could not confirm the BWDB official’s remarks. His Assistant Personal Secretary Sohel claimed that they did not receive any prior notice from the authorities regarding the drive. Earlier, Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) on February 5 had demolished several semi-concrete structures owned by Haji Salim. A list of the 37 illegal land grabbers was also submitted before the High Court bench of Justice Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury and Justice Md Ashraful Kamal.

Source: Dhaka Tribune February 18, 2019 18:33 UTC