Ain-O-Salish Kendro (ASK) Vs. Bangladesh

Relevant Citation: Writ Petition No. 8098 of 2013

The petitioner of the case is Ain-O-Shalish Kendro (ASK), a national legal aid and human rights organisation in Bangladesh which provides legal and social support to the dis-empowered, women, children and workers.

The issue of the case was regarding whether there was necessity to issue direction to protect vast tract of forest cover of a relevant district (Baraku and Parabartha mauza, Kaliganj Thana) being transformed into residential plots of a new town project that would impair environmental balance, ecosystem and biodiversity of that area.

The petitioners submitted that the writ petition was not intended to barge in the project of Purbachal New Town, rather to exclude the two mauza of Gazipur part of Purbachal housing project, namely, Barakau and Parabartha, for the reason that a considerable part of the two mauza is covered by dense shaal forest (locally known as Gazaigarh), orchard, medicinal plants and water bodies and it directly contributes to the environment.

The court observed that the petitioners were curiously uninformed and their effort to protect the environment was ill-timed as the records do not signify that they as organizations working in the environmental area have ever been awake to development of the project on time, neither that they are public spirited persons having interest more than a busybody for protection of environment, or ones having special knowledge in environmental science, or involved in environmental movements. On top of that, the court held that the petitioners have failed to press home their claim of forest expanse and its potential destruction, let alone a prima facie case of environmental degradation on that basis so as to justify interference by the court, thus, their action as PIL was incompetent in the existing context.