The High Court on Sunday issued a rule asking the authorities concerned to explain why it should not scrap a sub-section of the Chittagong Port Authority Act, 2022, which permits the port authority to recover, fill, and excavate riverbanks, riverbeds, and surrounding areas.
A High Court Division bench, consisting of Justice Farah Mahbub and Justice Debasish Roy Chowdhury, passed the order, asking six officials, including the cabinet and law secretaries, to respond within two weeks.
The court issued this order after hearing a public interest litigation filed by the rights organization Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh (HRPB).
Advocate Manzill Murshid represented the plea before the court.
The Chittagong Port Authority Act was ratified in 2022, and the gazette regarding this was issued on April 13, 2022.
According to section 10 (2) (cha), the port authority is allowed to reclaim, excavate, enclose, and raise areas on riverbanks, beds, or bottoms that are in a state of inundation.
