Legal hurdles cleared for elevated expressway

A seven-year legal dispute over the ongoing construction of the Dhaka Elevated Expressway and a four-lane railway line beneath it has been resolved, clearing the way for the development projects to continue.

Attorney General Barrister Ruhul Quddus Kajal said there were no longer any legal obstacles to carrying out the projects following an order by the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court.

The order was passed on Wednesday by Chamber Judge Justice Mohammad Rezaul Haque during the court’s vacation session.

After the hearing, the court directed the authorities to continue the development work. However, it also instructed the relevant authorities to take necessary and effective measures regarding the compensation, or award money, claimed by A M Mostafizur Rahman over his asserted land ownership.

The dispute concerns a plot of land in the Pearabagh area of Moghbazar, where Bangladesh Railway and Mostafizur Rahman had been engaged in a prolonged dispute over ownership, according to the attorney general.

The dispute had halted development work in the area for seven years.

Mostafizur Rahman filed a case with the Land Survey Tribunal in 2019 and secured a verdict in his favour on May 29 that year. As the Land Survey Appellate Tribunal had not been formed at the time, the government initially approached the Supreme Court but failed to obtain an order.

After the appellate tribunal was established, the government filed an appeal, and a verdict was delivered in favour of Bangladesh Railway on September 2, 2026.

Challenging that verdict, Mostafizur Rahman filed writ petition No. 13892/2026 with the High Court Division. On September 28, the High Court ordered the parties to maintain the status quo, once again putting the construction work in uncertainty.

The state, the Railway Ministry, the deputy commissioner and the settlement officer subsequently filed Civil Miscellaneous Petition No. 994/2026 with the Appellate Division challenging the High Court order.

The hearing took place around 5:00pm on Wednesday after special permission was granted by the vacation bench.