ter the changeover in power, the BNP-Jamaat alliance government kept the law out of force. After their return to power again in 2011, the AL government brought about major amendments to the act with a view to settling the problems related the vested properties. The amendment provided for a programme to return the vested properties under the government possession to the proper owners within 120 days. But the administration even failed to prepare the list within this stipulated time. Subsequently, the problems were lingered and the act was amended twice in 2012 and again twice in 2013. Every time a deadline was fixed and it was said that the problems would be resolved within the period. But never the problems were resolved and against this backdrop, the draft of an amendment to the act is being prepared. When the act was amended in 2011, there were provisions for Ka and Kha schedules. The properties under the government possession were put under the Ka schedule while those not in government possession were put in the Kha schedule. Although passed in the parliament, there was dilly-dallying in execution of the decision. After the 1965 Indo-Pak war the properties left behind by the citizens who left Pakistan for India between September 9 of that year and February 16 of 1969 were listed as enemy properties under Defence of Pakistan Rules 1965. In independent Bangladesh the enemy properties were renamed as vested properties and to return those properties to the legal successors the Vested Properties Act was made in 2001. That act is being amended in phases. A victim of Manikganj district, who got the verdicts from the ‘tribunal and appeal’ for getting back the vested properties, said the officials are not allowing mutation of the properties in his favour. The officials said that if the mutation is done, they may face trouble. The victim said he does not know who had enlisted his properties as vested properties and he has been struggling over the issue for 40 years. Meanwhile, sources said that in Narayanganj there is a plot of 167 decimals of land. After the land was included in the list of vested properties, the owner filed a case with the tribunal and got the verdict in his favour. Subsequently, the government preferred an appeal and lost. As a result, no obstacle is supposed to be there for the owner to get back the land. But even then the officials including the DC of Narayanganj are not transferring the documents in the name of the owner. The officials concerned are reluctant to conclude the mutation of the land in the name of the owner for fear of trouble in future. The AC land seeks directive from the DC while the DC seeks the same from the land ministry. Whereas, under law there is no bar on mutation after the verdict of tribunal and appeal. The problem is being complicated further by the bureaucratic tangle of the land ministry.
Tuesday, May 5, 2015
Owners win legal battle, official hurdles remain:Daily Sun
ter the changeover in power, the BNP-Jamaat alliance government kept the law out of force. After their return to power again in 2011, the AL government brought about major amendments to the act with a view to settling the problems related the vested properties. The amendment provided for a programme to return the vested properties under the government possession to the proper owners within 120 days. But the administration even failed to prepare the list within this stipulated time. Subsequently, the problems were lingered and the act was amended twice in 2012 and again twice in 2013. Every time a deadline was fixed and it was said that the problems would be resolved within the period. But never the problems were resolved and against this backdrop, the draft of an amendment to the act is being prepared. When the act was amended in 2011, there were provisions for Ka and Kha schedules. The properties under the government possession were put under the Ka schedule while those not in government possession were put in the Kha schedule. Although passed in the parliament, there was dilly-dallying in execution of the decision. After the 1965 Indo-Pak war the properties left behind by the citizens who left Pakistan for India between September 9 of that year and February 16 of 1969 were listed as enemy properties under Defence of Pakistan Rules 1965. In independent Bangladesh the enemy properties were renamed as vested properties and to return those properties to the legal successors the Vested Properties Act was made in 2001. That act is being amended in phases. A victim of Manikganj district, who got the verdicts from the ‘tribunal and appeal’ for getting back the vested properties, said the officials are not allowing mutation of the properties in his favour. The officials said that if the mutation is done, they may face trouble. The victim said he does not know who had enlisted his properties as vested properties and he has been struggling over the issue for 40 years. Meanwhile, sources said that in Narayanganj there is a plot of 167 decimals of land. After the land was included in the list of vested properties, the owner filed a case with the tribunal and got the verdict in his favour. Subsequently, the government preferred an appeal and lost. As a result, no obstacle is supposed to be there for the owner to get back the land. But even then the officials including the DC of Narayanganj are not transferring the documents in the name of the owner. The officials concerned are reluctant to conclude the mutation of the land in the name of the owner for fear of trouble in future. The AC land seeks directive from the DC while the DC seeks the same from the land ministry. Whereas, under law there is no bar on mutation after the verdict of tribunal and appeal. The problem is being complicated further by the bureaucratic tangle of the land ministry.
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