HC Halts Felling of Trees at Suhrawardy Udyan

The High Court on Tuesday asked Attorney General AM Amin Uddin today to take necessary steps so no trees at Suhrawardy Udyan are felled till May 20.

The HC bench of Justice Mamnoon Rahman and Justice Khandaker Diliruzzaman passed the order, reports media.

The court also fixed May 20 for hearing a contempt of court petition filed against the government on the charge of clearing trees and setting up restaurant at Suhrawardy Udyan, ignoring the HC's 2009 verdict.

“Our order is that the hearing will come before this court on May 20,” said Justice Mamnoon Rahman, senior judge of the bench. The attorney general “should tell them, verbally, not to cut any trees in the meantime”.

Attorney General AM Amin Uddin responded to this, saying: “I will speak to them immediately.”

The government has faced criticism for the new development project it has undertaken at the Suhrawardy Udyan, the site of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s historic speech delivered on Mar 7, 1971.

The project includes the construction of a restaurant and a walkway, among other structures in the area. Several mature trees were felled for the new project and several others are marked for clearance.