No Kamrangirchar land for RAB

The government has decided not to allocate RAB-10 land in Dhaka’s Kamrangirchar area to set up a permanent headquarters. Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), an elite force formed in April 2004, was allotted 7-acre land on the bank of Buriganga River for around Tk 10 million in 2007. The decision was taken at a meeting presided over by Housing and Public Works Minister Mosharraf Hossain at the Secretariat on Monday. Four other ministers were present at the meeting. Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan said private-owned land will be acquired for RAB if needed. Besides, there are many government lands. ‘Land will be allocated for RAB by safeguarding environment. We want to protect environment. The prime minister has also directed us to do that,’ the minister said. The government changed its decision in the light of an allegation against three former RAB officials over their involvement in Narayanganj 7 murders. The Dhaka district administration allocated RAB 7 acres of land in Kamrangirchar at Tk 9,818,138. The land was handed over to RAB during the military-backed interim government in 2007, according to bdnews24.com.