Labour Act violation: Prof Yunus, others seek exemption from charges

Staff Reporter  :
Nobel Laureate Prof Dr Muhammad Yunus and three others have claimed in a Labour Court in Dhaka that the charges of violating Labour Act brought against them by the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) are false.

The accused also appealed to the court for exemption from the charges for the sake of justice.

Prof Yunus and other accused on Thursday went to the Third Labour Court to defend themselves in the case filed against them on charge of violating Labour law.

Judge of the Third Labour Court, Sheikh Merina Sultana, started
the hearing at 1:10 PM. Then Barrister Abdullah Al Mamun, main counsel of the accused, read out a written statement on behalf of Prof Yunus and others in their defense.

In the defense statement, the accused said if the provisions of Section 234 of the Labour Act are violated, the government has provided many remedies under Section 236 of the same act.

However, the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments cannot file a criminal case against the accused without complying with the above provisions of Section 236 of the Labour Act. This is motivated and complete violation of the law.

It is not a criminal offense by any means.
After hearing the defense statement, the Judge of the Third Labour Court fixed November 16 for holding arguments in the case.

During a briefing Prof Youns said, “None of the ventures, I have undertaken are for personal gain. It may be Grameen Bank or any other institution.

People establish institutions, commercial institutions to gain profit and to increase it. We have also gained profit and grown our business.

But our main focus was on social business or benefiting people through business. Here the person investing will not take any profit from it.

I am the proponent of this idea and trying to promote it globally. If I myself do the opposite, then it doesn’t happen anymore.”