Cabinet okays draft law to end land grabbing based on possession

The cabinet on Monday approved the draft of a new law to prevent land grabbing and set a maximum seven-year jail term for coveting private property.

Cabinet Secretary Md Mahbub Hossain briefed reporters about the new law after a meeting presided over by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Till now, a land grabber could legally claim a portion of land if he could prove he kept it in his possession for 12 years at a stretch without using any force. Legal heirs or buyers of a land were deprived of their ownership rights twelve years after procuring legal documents if they failed to occupy their land in the meantime by filing lawsuits.

Under the new draft law, land owners would only have to show legal documents to claim ownership and file suits to oust greedy occupiers.

Mahbub Hossain said the new law aims to address issues like cheating land owners of their rights, fraud, and transfer complications.

Those assisting land grabbers in occupying others' property would be tried under the new law and get the same penalty as the land grabbers. The minimum punishment would be two-year jail for the land grabbers and others complicit in the crime.

To reduce legal hassles for people, the law would allow out-of-court dispute resolution by the plaintiff and the accused.

Other draft laws getting greenlights at Monday's cabinet meeting included issues like homeopathy treatment, soil management, the Lakshmipur Science and Technology University, among others.

Furthermore, the cabinet approved the draft of an agreement on ending double taxation, and tax evasion signed between Bangladesh and Hong Kong. Now, Bangladesh has signed the agreement with 42 countries.