Abahani ground renamed Dhanmondi Cricket Ground

The name of the historic Abahani ground in the capital's Dhanmondi has been changed as of Thursday. From now on, the ground will be known as Dhanmondi Cricket Ground. At the same time, responsibility for the ground has been handed over from Abahani Club to the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

The Ministry of Housing and Public Works has handed over the ground to the Ministry of Youth and Sports by cancelling the lease and signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU). From now on, the Ministry of Youth and Sports will be responsible for the maintenance and preservation of the ground. At the same time, the ground will be opened to the public.

In the same process, responsibility for the ground of Dhanmondi Club Limited has also been handed over to the Ministry of Youth and Sports. An MoU was signed between the two ministries on Thursday to this end.

Later, speaking to the media at the Secretariat, Secretary of the Ministry of Housing and Public Works Obaydur Rahman said, "Abahani Club has two years of dues for the ground. They have not paid the fee since 2023. A receipt for the 2024 fee is visible, but it was paid after the contract was cancelled."

The ground in Dhanmondi had been leased to Abahani Club for 99 years. The Ministry of Housing and Public Works said the contract was cancelled due to two consecutive years of unpaid fees.

No one from Abahani Club was willing to comment on losing responsibility for the ground. An official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said, "I do not want to speak on this. The government has done what it thought was best. What else is there to say?"

Meanwhile, Housing Minister Zakaria Taher claimed, "They built structures on the Dhanmondi ground (Abahani ground) without taking any permission from us or Rajuk."

Work on building the Sheikh Kamal Sports Complex there has been ongoing since 2022. A residential facility for players has also been built next to it.

Recalling his own sporting memories associated with the Dhanmondi ground, State Minister for Youth and Sports Aminul Haque said, "I have trained at both the Dhanmondi ground, known as Abahani ground, and the Dhanmondi ground No. 8. I want to give importance to sports at both grounds."

He further said, "You have all seen the anger of the youth after the July uprising over how Abahani and Dhanmondi Club were politicised for 17 years. We believe both clubs have a lot of heritage that must be preserved. Those involved with the autocracy are not the club's real people. The clubs will be run by those who are the club's real people."

Work on building the Sheikh Kamal Sports Complex has been halted for a long time. However, the State Minister for Sports does not want to demolish the infrastructure already built. He said, "I do not want to demolish the structures. A way will be arranged to manage everything beautifully with everyone while keeping them. I have spoken about running the club beautifully with everyone, rather than focusing on the cancellation of the contract."