Chairman of High Speed Group of Companies KM Mahmudur Rahman in a rejoinder protested a news item headlined "Rajuk evicts lake grabbers" in The Daily Star on January 19 clarifying that "one Nilufar Mustafa" owns the lakeside house no-36 on road-118.

Rahman said since he is an environmental activist, association of his name in connection with the eviction of illegal possession of land on the lake bank by the house owner has tarnished his image.

OUR REPLY

As quoted in the report, it was Iftekhar Ahmed, a manager of the High Speed Group, who said at the site of eviction, "The chairman of High Speed Group KM Mahmudur Rahman stays at the house but his sister-in-law owns it."

Contacted on receiving the rejoinder, Administrative Officer of the High Speed Group of Companies Azad Islam reconfirmed the connection saying that Nilufar Mustafa is sister-inlaw of Mahmudur Rahman. She is wife of late KM Abu Ahmed Mustafa, who was brother of KM Mahmudur Rahman and a director of High Speed Group.

"High Speed Group has been using the house as a rest house since 1983. Ever since, the house has been occupying the additional land into the lake," Mahfuzul Haq, a general manager of High Speed Group, had said when the demolition was on.

Azad Islam, on the other hand, said, "It is actually not a guest house but we who work at High Speed Group stay here.”

Their legal counsel advocate MA Wadud, who was present at the demolition site, said, "Rajuk allots additional land to all the lakeside plot owners. Why shouldn't it give us?"

In defending the encroachment by the owner of the lakeside house, officials including the aforesaid general manager, manager and administrative officer of High Speed Group of Companies repeatedly appealed to the on-duty magistrate and the executive engineer of Rajuk to stop demolition referring to the name of the group's Chairman KM Mahmudur Rahman in front of a host of other media representatives.