Dr Yunus gets 6-month jail but avoids prison as court grants 1-month bail

Grameen Telecom Chairman and Nobel Laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus and three other senior officials of the organisation have been sentenced to six months imprisonment and fined Tk30,000 each in a case filed on charges of violating labour law.

The charges include failing to provide a 5% dividend to the Grameen Telecom workers, not regularising 101 staff, and not compensating workers for public holidays.

Following the verdict, Dr Yunus told reporters, "We are being punished for a crime we did not commit. It was my fate, the nation's fate. We have accepted this verdict, but will appeal against this verdict and continue fighting against this sentence."

Judge Sheikh Marina Sultana of Dhaka's Labour Court 3 announced the verdict on Monday.

The other three accused in the case are – Grameen Telecom's Director (former managing director) Md Ashraful Hassan, and members of the Board of Directors Nurjahan Begum and Md Shahjahan.

The court also said failure to pay the fine would lead to 15 more days in jail.

All the accused, who were already on bail, as well as domestic and foreign observers, were present in the courtroom while the verdict in the much-talked-about case was delivered.

Dr Yunus reached the court around 12:45pm. After the verdict, Yunus and three other convicts filed a bail petition and the court granted them a month's bail, on condition of filing an appeal against the verdict.

While reading out the 84-page verdict, the court said, "The defence complemented the accused No 1, Yunus, who is the Nobel-winning international figure for fighting poverty. But Nobel laureate Yunus is not being tried in this court, he is being tried as the chairman of Grameen Telecom. The allegations of violation of labour law have been proven against him."

Dr Yunus's lawyer, Barrister Abdullah Al Mamun, told reporters that the verdict was rushed and delivered by holding only 10 hearings, which is unprecedented in the history of the labour court.

"We are angry. This verdict is unfair and against the law. We have been deprived of justice. We will appeal against this verdict," said the lawyer.

Expressing satisfaction with this verdict, Khurshid Alam Khan, the lawyer of the Directorate of Factories, said, "We have been able to prove the allegations." Expected verdict received. We think business owners will now be cautious. No one is above the law. If the law is violated, action will be taken against him.

However, the prosecution expressed satisfaction with this verdict. 

Khurshid Alam Khan, the lawyer of the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments which lodged the case, said, "We have been able to prove the charges we pressed against them. We received an expected verdict. We think business owners will now be more cautious about flouting labour laws. No one is above the law. If the law is violated, action will be taken against the violators."

Security in and around the court, situated at Tapa Complex in Bijay Nagar of the capital, was intensified for the highly anticipated verdict.

Beyond local media, an array of international journalists from outlets like BBC, Al Jazeera, and Deutsche Welle also converged to document this moment.

Who filed the case and why?

On 9 September 2021, the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) Inspector Arifuzzaman filed the case with the labour court and the court summoned the four accused to appear before it by 12 October 2021.

According to the case documents, a team of the Dife went on an inspection of Grameen Telecom and found violations of labour laws. The team found that workers and employees were not made permanent at Grameen Telecom following the Labour Law 2006 and the Labour Rules 2015 after their apprenticeship ended. 

Besides, workers and employees who are employed were not given annual leave with pay, leave encashment and cash against leave.

In addition, the Workers Profit Participation Fund (WPPF) and Welfare Fund were not formed, as well as a 5% of the organisation's profit was not deposited to the fund formed following the Workers Welfare Foundation Act, the case statement said.

The court on 6 June in 2023 framed charges against Dr Yunus and three others in the case.

On 23 July this year, a High Court bench issued a 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 19 May by the accused. The High Court on 8 August scrapped the rule.

Dr Yunus and the other accused filed a petition with the Appellate Division seeking to scrap the trial proceeding in the case.

On 20 August, the Appellate Division, however, rejected the petition, challenging the High Court verdict that rejected Yunus's petition against the labour court's indictment order.

After the Appellate Division cleared the way for trial, the court started recording statements of prosecution witnesses on 22 August. 

The plaintiff's lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan sought the highest punishment of Dr Muhammad Yunus and the three others in the case.

The court started hearing the statements of the defendants on 8 November.