Labour law violation: Trial against Dr Yunus begins

The trial of the case filed against Nobel Laureate and Grameen Telecom Chairman Dr Muhammad Yunus and three others over violations of labour laws began at a Dhaka court today (August 22).

The three other accused are top officials Ashraful Hasan, Nur Jahan Begum and Mohammad Shahjahan. Sheikh Merina Sultana, chairman of the Third Labour Court of Dhaka, started recording statements of prosecution witness Tariqul Islam.

Prof Yunus did not appear before the court in today's hearing but his lawyer represented him at the court. Earlier on August 20, The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court dismissed a leave to appeal petition filed against a High Court verdict that cleared the way for the labour court to run the trial of a case filed against Dr Muhammad Yunus, and three others on charge of violating labour law.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Hasan Foez Siddique passed the dismissal order on Sunday. On August 8, a High Court Division comprising Justice SM Quddus Zaman and Justice Shahed Noor Uddin rejected the rule. Lawyer of the defendant Barrister Abdullah Al Mamun made a plea against the order to the Appellate Division.

Earlier on July 23 this year, a High Court bench issued the rule asking the state to explain why the labour court order that framed charges against Dr Yunus and three others should not be scrapped, followed by an application submitted on May 19 by the noble laureate.

On June 6, charges were framed against them four.

Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) Inspector Arifuzzaman filed the case against Dr Yunus, Grameen Telecom Managing Director Ashraful Hasan, Board Directors Nurjahan Begum and Md Shahjahan on September 9, 2021, and the court had summoned the four to appear before it by October 12, 2021.

According to the case documents, a team of the DIFE went on an inspection to the Grameen Telecom and found the violations of labour laws like not regularizing 101 staff and not establishing a welfare fund for the laborers, among others.

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