BNP Ward Office Built on Encroached Highway Land in Bogura

A local unit of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has reportedly occupied state-owned land belonging to the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) in Bogura to construct a party office. The tin-roofed structure, featuring a half-brick wall painted green, sits on approximately five decimals of highway land directly adjacent to the Youth Development Directorate near the Tinmatha Railgate area. A banner proclaiming it as the office for the 15th Ward BNP under Bogura Metropolitan unit hangs prominently at the front of the site along the busy Bogura-Rangpur highway.

According to local records, the site has been the subject of repeated encroachments and subsequent demolitions over two decades. The land was originally occupied in 2003 by the Fapor Union unit of the BNP before the broader area was integrated into the municipality. Following public criticism at the time, the structure was dismantled in 2005 on the explicit instructions of BNP leader Tarique Rahman.

In the years that followed, several attempts were made during the Awami League administration to re-establish the office, but the RHD repeatedly intervened, tearing down unauthorized constructions. In 2022, after another makeshift structure was built on the location, the RHD demolished it to facilitate highway expansion works. Despite being evicted at least six times over the years, local leaders reoccupied the plot following political shifts after 5 August 2024. Following the administrative transition that included the formal declaration of Bogura as a City Corporation by Tarique Rahman on 20 April, the site was rebranded with a new banner as the 15th Ward BNP office.

Addressing the controversy, Kamal Hossain, General Secretary of Fapor Union BNP, admitted that the party office had originally been built on unused RHD land. He acknowledged the past history of demolitions and explained that following the recent administrative reclassification of the area into a City Corporation ward, the structure was repurposed as the 15th Ward party office.

Local unit leaders have signalled a willingness to vacate the premises. Emdadul Haq Milon, General Secretary of the 15th Ward BNP, stated that the office would be relocated from the highway land. Similarly, 15th Ward BNP President Abdul Mannan acknowledged that the office stands on government property, noting that the party has seen the structure broken down six times in the past and would remove it if it causes public inconvenience or safety concerns.

Senior leadership within the party’s metropolitan unit denied prior knowledge of the encroachment. Moniruzzaman Moni, General Secretary of Bogura Metropolitan BNP, emphasized that top leadership maintains strict instructions against setting up party offices on government property, adding that local operators would be instructed to clear the plot immediately. Hamidul Haq Chowdhury Hiru, President of Bogura Metropolitan BNP and Vice-President of the district unit, echoed these sentiments, stating he would order an immediate inspection and require the land to be cleared.

Rashedul Haq, Executive Engineer of the RHD in Bogura, confirmed that no private or political structures are permitted on highway territory. He stated that departmental officials would conduct a spot inspection and initiate necessary legal and eviction measures to clear the land.