Big lawyers engaged to block payment of hundreds of crores

Staff Reporter :
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Monday observed that poor farmers are brought away tying their wrests with ropes for collecting Tk 5,000 to Tk 10,000 as loan from them, whereas big lawyers are engaged to resist the payments of loans of hundreds of cores of taka.

A three-member bench of the Appellate Division of the SC headed by Chief Justice Hasan Foez Siddique made the observation while holding hearing on a leave to appeal petition filed by one Md Masudur Rahman challenging a High Court that ordered Masudur and three other of his family members to submit the statements of their wealth and properties before it (HC).

At one stage of the hearing, the apex court expressed anger at the lawyer for Masudur after the court was informed that only Tk 0.5 million has been paid to Sonali Bank against the total amount of more than Tk 1.15 billion of loan and interest.

The Appellate Division also dismissed the leave to appeal petition which means that Masudur and three of his family members must submit the statements of their wealth and properties.

Sonali Bank’s lawyer Shamim Khaled Ahmed said Fazlur Rahman, a businessman from Narayanganj, was the owner of a company titled as “Fazlur Rahman and Company”.

The company had taken Tk 320 million as loan from Sonali Bank’s Motijheel branch in 1996-1997. However, Fazlur Rahman died in 2017.

Sonali Bank authorities filed a case with Artha Rin Adalat (Money Loan Court) in 2017 for collecting the money from the company. The Artha Rin Adalat issued a decree of Tk 1.02 billion in favour of Sonali Bank.

Later on, Sonali Bank filed a “money execution” case with the Artha Rin Adalat in 2021 for realizing the money from Fazlur Rahman’s four children including Masudur Rahman. In the case, the court sentenced them to six months’ civil jail. At that time, the amount of loan and interest stood at Tk 1.15 billion.

Masudur then filed a writ petition with the HC challenging the order of civil jail against them. Following the writ petition, the HC stayed the order of civil jail, and issued a rule questioning the legality of the order.

During hearing of the rule, the HC on May 22 this year ordered Masudur and his family members to submit the statements of the wealth and properties before this court in two months.

Masudur filed the leave to appeal petition with the SC challenging the HC order, lawyer Shamim Khaled Ahmed said. He also said the HC will deliver its verdict after Masudur and others submit the statements of their wealth and properties.

Masudur’s lawyer Moksadul Islam said that his client (Masudur) was a six years’ old child when his father Fazlur Rahman had taken the loan of Tk 320 million for his company in 1996-1997.

How Masudur and his family member will pay Tk 1.15 billion as they have no such properties, he said, adding that Masudur has paid Tk 0.5 million to Sonali Bank from his own pocket.