HC orders MP Salam Murshedy to hand over Gulshan house to govt

The High Court has ordered Member of Parliament Abdus Salam Murshedy to hand over the Gulshan 2 house, which he "unlawfully" occupies, to the government.

The HC bench of Justice Md Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice Kazi Ibadat Hossain passed the order today, directing Salam Murshedy to handover the property to the housing and public works ministry within three months after receiving the copy of the verdict.

The court also directed the housing and public works secretary to submit a compliance report through the HC registrar office within 15 days after taking possession of the property.

Senior Advocate Mohammad Syed Ahmed represented Salam Murshedy in court, while Senior Advocate Khurshid Alam Khan stood for the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), Deputy Attorney General Saifuddin Khaled appeared for the state and Advocate Anik R Haque stood for the petitioner.

Following the verdict, Syed Ahmed said they will file an appeal petition challenging the ruling.

Earlier on 30 October, 2022, Barrister Syed Sayedul Haque Suman filed a writ petition with the High Court seeking directions to dispose of the application he filed to the ACC against Abdus Salam Murshedy, who is also the vice president of Bangladesh Football Federation, for allegedly unlawfully occupying a house in the capital's Gulshan.

Barrister Suman alleged that Salam Murshedy has been unlawfully occupying and claiming ownership of a house in Gulshan which he found was the property of the Public Works Department. He claimed that Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) gave Murshedy the ownership of the house, which they legally cannot.

According to the writ petition, House No 29 on Road No 104 in the capital's Gulshan 2 was declared abandoned in the "Kha" list of the Extraordinary Gazette 1986. However, Abdus Salam Murshedy has been residing there despite its abandoned status.

Attached to the writ were three letters from the Ministry of Housing and Public Works to Rajuk chairman dated 13 April 2015, 20 January 2016, and 4 July 2022.

The letter requests an explanation as to why the Rajuk chairman's office permitted Murshedy's occupation and registration of the property despite its inclusion in the list of abandoned houses. However, the Rajuk chairman showed reluctance to provide such an explanation.

After the writ, the court issued a ruling on 1 November 2022, seeking clarification on the lack of legal action against Murshedy for the unauthorised occupation of the house. The court directed the submission of relevant documents related to the house in affidavit form and prohibited both parties from publicising the case's details without authorisation and court proceedings.