In Pekerkhal village of Ward No. 5 of Toakul Union No. 8 of Gowainghat Upazila of Sylhet, Anwar Hossain, son of Yakub Ali and former president of Toakul Union Chhatra League, during the previous government's tenure, forcibly constructed a house, bathroom and tube well on the only road for the villagers to travel on, which is included in Khash Khatian No. 1.
In addition, Azir Uddin and Alauddin forcibly constructed houses on the road. Due to this, 20/25 families of Pekerkhal village have been deprived of the road for a long time.
Delwar Hossain, son of late Abdur Rakib, filed a complaint in the court in 2023 on behalf of the villagers to recover the road. In view of this, in January 2025, the Honorable Court directed Assistant Commissioner Bhumi Gowainghat to recover the road by demolishing the houses, bathrooms and tube wells under construction.
In view of the court's instructions, Assistant Commissioner Bhumi Gowainghat went to the spot with a surveyor and surveyed the road and determined its boundaries. But the encroachers ignored the administration's instructions and have not removed the structures to this day. Meanwhile, Delwar Hossain again filed a written complaint with the former Deputy Commissioner of Sylhet, and the Deputy Commissioner instructed UNO Gowainghat and Assistant Commissioner (Land), Gowainghat to quickly remove the structures and salvage the road, but for unknown reasons, no action has been taken even after 6/7 months.
On the other hand, Ali Hossain, a Saudi expatriate from the same village, son of the deceased Abdur Rakib, filed a written application to the Sylhet District Commissioner and Divisional Commissioner for the demolition of the structure and the recovery of the road. After going to the site, it was found that a 20-foot wide road of Khas Khatian No. 1 goes from Gowainghat-Salutikar road to the house of the late freedom fighter Abdul Khaliq of Pekerkhal village. In the meantime, Anwar Hossain, the former president of the Toaqul Union Chhatra League of the same village, using the influence of the government party, established a house, bathroom and tube well on the road and Azir Uddin and Alauddin, the sons of the deceased Abdul Hamid, built another house at the end of the road.
This has hindered the travel of about 200 people from 20/25 families of Pekerkhal village to schools, colleges, madrasas and markets, and these people are having a hard time traveling. When talking to accused Anwar Hossain on mobile phone, he said that I had constructed a house, bathroom and tube well, AC Land came and measured the structures and asked me to demolish them, UNO Gowainghat called me and asked me to demolish the structures. In response to the question why he did not demolish them, he said that if Azir Uddin and Alauddin demolish their structures at the end, I will also demolish them. Accused Azir Uddin said that I was not present during the survey, I objected and filed a written complaint with AC Land for a full hearing.
When asked, the Sylhet Deputy Commissioner said he had received a written complaint and would take action immediately. When asked, Assistant Commissioner Bhumi Gowainghat Omar Faruk said he was aware of the matter and would take action within a day or two.
Photo caption: Chhatra League leader Anwar has built a residence and bathroom by occupying the government Khas Khatian road in Gowainghat, Sylhet.
