The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

The British Columbia school of Adabor , Shayamoly in Dhaka city yesterday termed baseless and untrue a news item published in a vernacular daily that a canal was leased out in favour of the wife of President Prof Iajuddin Ahmed 48 hours after he took oath as Chief Adviser of the Caretaker Government in 2006.

A statement signed by the vice chairman of the school Habibur Rahman Mollah said a 33 decimal plot of land had actually been transferred in favour of the school of which Prof Dr Anwara Begum, wife of President is the chairperson, by the then prime minister in keeping with the rules in force, on 22 October 2006. The school termed the news item motivated and strongly condemned its publication.

To remove the misunderstanding created in the public mind the vice chairman of the school said in the statement that the British Columbia school was eastablished in a rented house in 2001 to help study of students in Adabor area and subsequently earned appreciation of the local people.

As the school had no land, the authority applied to the Dhaka WASA in 2003 for allotment of a low lying land in Ramchandrapur mouja in Adabor for the development of the institution. At the same time the local people also applied to the WASA authority to clean and develop the area to make it liveable. The WASA authority gave no objection to the Deputy Commissioner of Dhaka considering that straightening of the U-turn lake will not hamper water flow.

As the Deputy Commissioner of Dhaka did not take steps despite no objection from the Dhaka WASA, the school authority applied to the President for the same low lying land. Later the application was forwarded to the Ministry of Land.

After a joint investigation by the Dhaka WASA and the Deputy Commissioner of Dhaka, the WASA authority on 09 July 2005 again submitted a letter to the Deputy Commissioner of Dhaka stating that it had no objection to allocate the land in favour of the school.

Later the assistant commissioner (land) of Dhanmondi circle recommended allotment of the land in favour of the British Colombia school in pursuance of the lease case no 2/2005. Following the recommendation, the than Prime Minster Begum Khaleda Zia allotted the land in favour of the school on 22 October 2006.

Therefore, it is not true that the land was allotted in favour of the school within 48 hour of taking oath by the President as Chief Adviser of the Caretaker Government, the statement said.