Rights activists hail PM’s order to keep Tentultala field as playground
The activists extended their gratitude to the premier
Rights activists and environmentalists today hailed the prime minister's order to keep the Tentultala field in the capital's Kalabagan area as a playground.
Earlier in the day, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said local people will use the playground as before as per the instruction of the prime minister.
Human rights activists, environmentalists, cultural activists and locals have been staging protests for saving the playground.
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As soon as the direction came today, the activists welcomed it and extend their gratitude to the premier.
Syeda Rizwana Hasan, chief executive of the Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA), said, "All we wanted is the field stays reserved for locals as an open space, whoever owns it. The prime minister has allowed to keep it open for locals."
She said that the detailed area plan of Dhaka city, which is in the final stage, has shown this field as an open space and that is not being changed.
She demanded that the field be maintained properly.
Architect Iqbal Habib told The Business Standard that he is taking the prime minister's direction positively.
"She (prime minister) has said that local people will use this playground as before and the land will remain as police property. A possibility of its development will be created if police carry out the maintenance of the ground," he said.
He also expressed hope that by making this field more useful, police will prepare it for various social and cultural programmes.
"Police will take care of the field in their ownership and the locals can get help from the police for its safety and maintenance," he added.
Earlier today (28 April), rights activist Syeda Ratna said she knew that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina would not allow the police station to be built on the playground when she hears about the incident.
"I would like to thank the prime minister for her decision," she told The Business Standard after Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said the Tentultala field will remain a playground.
She also urged that the Tentultala ground not be under the ownership of the police.
"I urge the premier to make the playground completely free. In future, they (police) may change their mind and demand to construct buildings to use the spot as their own," she added.
On Sunday this week, Syeda Ratna and her 17-year-old son were whisked up to Kalabagan police station. They were released after 13 hours on condition of "not obstructing government work". Following the detention of the mother-son duo, rights activists joined the growing chorus for saving the playground.
In the wake of the protest, home minister instructed the authorities to find an alternative location for the police station.
However, cops continued the construction of a police station on Tentultala playground in Dhaka's Kalabagan on Tuesday, ignoring protests by children and even the home minister's instructions for shifting to an alternative location.
