Tension is spiking among railway workers following the alleged grabbing of Chattogram Goods and Port Yard (CGPY) which contains a century-old mazar, graves, a mosque, and a waterbody in the port city.
Railway workers and local residents have alleged after Bangladesh Railway reportedly leased out the land of the religious and social establishments to a private company for the construction of a container depot on the railway land.
They have also alleged the Land and Property Department has altered the land’s plot numbers and classifications to facilitate the lease, putting longstanding religious and social establishments at risk of extinction.
During a visit to the place, a signboard was seen bearing the name of QC Container Terminal and Logistics Ltd in front of the graveyard gate. There are graves of railway workers and their family members in the graveyard, which has been being used for nearly five decades.
“Hazrat Billah Kutub Shah (R) Jame Mosque” stands close to the mazar beside the graveyard. There is a pond which serves as the only waterbody for local people.
Mohammad Yasin, an assistant locomotive master at the railway, told TIMES of Bangladesh, “My grandfather has been buried in this graveyard. If a container depot is built here, what will happen to the graves of our ancestors?”
Another railway employee, Omar Faruk, has raised question, “If there is no mosque or graveyard, where will railway workers bury their dead family members?”
To protect the railway land, hundreds of railway workers and their family members gathered in the CRB area in the port city and besieged the office of the general manager of Bangladesh Railway on Tuesday morning.
Chanting slogans “Cancel the lease, save the graveyard, mosque, and mazar,” the demonstrators demanded an immediate halt to the project.
The protesters entered the railway building despite facing resistance from police and the railway security force. Later, the office gate was locked to bring the situation under control.
Following the protest, a 10-member delegation of the Bangladesh Railway Running Staff Union, led by its General Secretary Md Jahangir Alam, held a meeting with General Manager Md Subaktagin.
After the meeting, Subaktagin assured the protesters that the issue of the graveyard, mosque, and mazar has already been reported to the Director General and the Secretary of the Bangladesh Railway.
“A committee will visit the site tomorrow (Wednesday) to carry out a proper demarcation,” he said.
Following the assurance, the railway workers temporarily postponed their agitation programme.
Railway sources confirmed that 21.29 acres of land in Halishahar Maddhya Mouza area has been leased out to the private company named CCBL for the construction of a container terminal.
However, a portion of this land reportedly includes the mosque, graveyard, and pond.
According to documents from the district administration, 5.48 acres under BS Plot No. 15059 are officially recorded as graveyard land. Yet, allegations have surfaced that the railway authorities altered the land classification in the lease agreement to facilitate the project.
The controversy continues to spark outrage among railway workers and local people, who vow to continue their movement if the lease is not cancelled to protect the religious and social establishments.
