Metro Makers and Developers Limited Vs.

BELA and
others
The judgment came upon a writ petition as public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Bangladesh
Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA).

Together with the BELA petition, the Court has rejected an earlier petition filed by the Metro makers.

On August 14, 2004, BELA had filed the petition challenging the legality of the Project that was filling up
the sub-flood flow zone near Amin Bazar and was being implemented ignoring the mandate of RAJUK.

On 15 August, 2004, a division bench of the High Court comprising Justice Md Abdul Wahab Miah and
Justice Zinat Ara had issued injunction for six months against Metro Makers Ltd preventing it from
further earth filling or undertaking any other activity for implementing the project, including
advertisements to sell plots.

Subsequently, a division bench of a High Court bench of Justice Joynul Abedin and Justice Nirmalendu
Dhar had vacated the stay order, on September 1, 2004 against which BELA preferred appeal.

Although the vacation bench of the Appellate Division presided over by Justice Tafazzul Islam had again
granted stay in favour of BELA on October 3, 2004, on regular appeal the Appellate Division referred the
matter to the High Court Division for hearing on merit.

The matter was finally disposed of Wednesday together with the earlier writ petition filed by the Metro
makers alleging that RAJUK through filing police case was illegally obstructing its development activities.

In that case, Metro makers obtained stay in its favour and continued to implement the project on the
claim that they had RAJUK's approval for the same.

The permission letter they appended in their petition was challenged by BELA as forged and
subsequently on scrutiny of the original files, the court Wednesday held that the letter was of course not
a genuine one. The court, therefore, discharged the rule issued earlier that so long prevented RAJUK
from obstructing earth filling by the Metro makers.

The petition of BELA was fought against the indiscriminate and unregulated earth filling by the
developers that is causing unbearable water logging in the City.

Short summary

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has upheld its earlier verdict which declared the
Modhumoti Model Town housing project in Savar’s Amin Bazaar illegal.

A seven-member bench headed by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain rejected five review
pleas over its earlier decision on Thursday ending the project’s chances of gaining legal approval
in the process.
According to the verdict, builders Metro Makers must repay buyers double the amount they paid
for plots under the project.

The court has also directed the developers to restore the wetlands in Belamalia and Beilpur
which were filled up to develop the project within six months.

Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA) challenged the project in the High
Court on August 14, 2004, and the court on July 27, 2005, declared the project at Amin bazar
unauthorised, illegal and against public interest, bdnews24.com reported.

The Appellate Division subsequently upheld the High Court’s decision on August 7, 2012.

Later, Metro Makers and plot buyers filed a total of five review petitions with the top court in the
space of two years.

The Appellate Division scrapped the pleas after a hearing on Thursday.