HC orders 8-week halt to road construction on Cox’s Bazar beach dunes

The High Court has ordered an eight-week halt to road construction on the sand dunes of Cox’s Bazar sea beach, following allegations that the work was being carried out in violation of an earlier court directive to preserve the beach’s natural features.

An HC bench of Justice JBM Hassan and Justice Aziz Ahmed Bhuiyan passed the order today after hearing a contempt petition filed by Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh (HRPB) and a writ petition filed by the Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA).

The court also issued a rule and adjourned the contempt proceedings for eight weeks.


The petitions were filed following media reports alleging that construction work was continuing on the beach’s dunes despite an earlier High Court judgment.

In 2011, the High Court directed the authorities to preserve the natural features of Cox’s Bazar beach and remove all structures built on the sand dunes. Several structures were subsequently evicted twice following court orders.

During today’s hearing, BELA counsel Minhajul Haque Chowdhury said the beach area falls within an Ecologically Critical Area (ECA), requiring environmental clearance before any development work can be undertaken.

He said the authorities had obtained only land-use permission and started construction without the required environmental clearance.

HRPB Senior Advocate Manzill Murshid argued that the road project was destroying the beach’s natural features and amounted to contempt of court.

Attorney General Md Ruhul Quddus Kazal opposed any interim order, saying the road was being constructed as part of a government-approved development project to facilitate public movement.

The attorney general and Deputy Attorney General Nur Mohammad Azami represented the government.