Court orders reallocation of recovered Rajuk plots to landless, eligible candidates
In its observation in the verdict of the plot corruption case involving former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, the court said these unlawful practices undermined constitutional principles and state policies
A Dhaka court has ordered authorities to review all past land and housing allocations by Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) and the Ministry of Housing and Public Works, identify illegal or multiple plot holders, and reallocate all recovered plots exclusively to landless citizens and eligible applicants.
Dhaka's 5th Special Judge Court's Judge Md Abdullah Al Mamun issued the directives today (27 November).
The court issued a set of directives to curb decades of irregularities, stating that both institutions repeatedly violated laws and regulations to favour influential individuals.
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In its observation in the verdict of the plot corruption case involving former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, the court said these unlawful practices undermined constitutional principles and state policies, according to court sources.
Findings against Rajuk
The court stated that Rajuk had long ignored mandatory legal procedures in allocating government land. Senior officials, including the chairman, approved applications of privileged individuals while bypassing verification processes.
Prime ministers and their families, officials of the Prime Minister's Office, ministers, MPs, ruling party leaders, bureaucrats, and other influential figures repeatedly received undue benefits.
In many cases, allocations were granted without proper documentation or eligibility checks, amounting to abuse of power and violation of constitutional obligations.
To address this, the court ordered the immediate removal of all officials involved in irregular allocations from decision-making roles; departmental and criminal proceedings against them; and a forensic audit of all allocations made during the period of irregularities by independent experts.
Besides, introduction of a digital lottery system with mandatory live broadcast, audit trails, and encryption; collective responsibility for officials who approved illegal allocations, including suspension and criminal charges; legal protection and rewards for whistleblowers; and a priority-based, point-scoring system for landless individuals, low-income workers, vulnerable families, single mothers, people with disabilities, and retired government employees without housing.
Observations on the housing ministry
The verdict also criticised the Ministry of Housing and Public Works for its weak oversight of Rajuk, calling its supervision "merely nominal."
Instead of enforcing accountability, the ministry itself exercised illegal influence in "special category" allocations, further entrenching irregularities.
The court ordered, cancellation of the government's special recommendation policy; nullification of all ongoing special-category recommendations; a ban on issuing any new allocations under this category; restoration of full regulatory authority over Rajuk; formation of an independent monitoring unit; departmental and criminal action against ministry and Rajuk officials involved in misconduct.
