Shahinur Rahman Sona, Rajshahi

Are land grabbers more powerful than the government? Holding a banner along with several placards, the heirs of the rightful owners of the disputed properties and local residents held a human chain in Rajshahi, demanding that the land be recovered from alleged land grabbers and returned to its legitimate owners.

They also called upon the Prime Minister and Land Minister Mizanur Rahman Minu to intervene in the matter.

The placards carried slogans such as: “Landlords through forged deeds—the Suja family and associates,” “Landowners live in slums while occupiers live in palaces,” “Our deeds, our land,” and “Under the law of the country, the land belongs to the person who possesses the genuine deed.”

The human chain was held at around 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, demanding the recovery of the land allegedly under the illegal occupation of controversial land grabber Suza Uddoula and his associates, and its immediate handover to the rightful owners named in the deeds.

At the human chain, aggrieved victims and speakers expressed their long-standing grievances, alleging that Suza Uddoula and his associates had, for years, occupied land belonging to the rightful owners under the protection of an influential group. Having lost their ancestral and legally purchased properties, the affected families are now living amid extreme uncertainty, financial hardship and suffering.

The speakers further said that if the illegally occupied properties were returned, the affected families would regain their legitimate rights and their standard of living would improve significantly. They alleged that despite repeatedly approaching the relevant administrative authorities seeking the return of their rightful properties, they had received no effective remedy so far.

They demanded an immediate investigation and legal action against those responsible, as well as urgent and direct intervention by Prime Minister and Land Minister Mizanur Rahman Minu to recover the disputed land. The victims warned that they would launch tougher programmes if their demands were not addressed promptly.

One of the heirs, Raja, said that his maternal grandmother, Suraman Bibi, came to Rajshahi during the Partition of India after exchanging 48 bighas of land. As she had no son, her three daughters—Raja’s mother, Hafezan Bibi, Roushani Khatun and Surat Bibi—inherited the property and became its rightful owners.

Raja further said that, during the same period, Bibijan Begum came to Rajshahi after exchanging 13 bighas of land in the same area. After her death, her two sons, Abubakkar and Tarikul Islam, inherited the property and became its rightful owners.

However, according to the allegations, Suza Uddoula of the Terokhadia area allegedly prepared forged documents while working at the land office and forcibly occupied the properties.

After his death, his sons and daughters allegedly continued to occupy the land. The victims claimed that because the alleged occupiers are wealthy and influential, the rightful owners have been unable to effectively pursue the matter through legal channels.