The High Court on Monday quashed a 2010 food adulteration case against Nobel laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus, former chairman of Grameen Danone Food Limited, and two vendors from Chawk Bazar market in Dhaka.
Dhaka South City Corporation鈥檚 sanitary inspector Zone 1 Md Kamrul Hasan filed the case on November 24, 2010 over allegations of storing adulterated dairy products, specifically curd.
The bench of Justice K M Hafizul Alam and Justice Md Atabullah delivered the verdict after disposing of a petition filed in on February 19, 2011 by Professor Yunus, currently serving as the chief adviser to the interim government.
He had challenged the legality of the proceedings against him.
The court鈥檚 decision followed an affidavit submitted on March 13, 2025, by the chief health officer of the Dhaka South City Corporation.
The affidavit stated that the case was filed based on a certificate issued by the DSCC鈥檚 public analyst, which was later found to be erroneous.
The High Court on February 22, 2011 stayed the proceedings in the case asking the government authorities to explain why the proceedings would not be quashed.
Lawyer Tanim Hussain Shawon, representing Professor Yunus, argued that the case had been filed with the Pure Food Court of Special Metropolitan Magistrate in Dhaka in violation of procedural requirements under the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Pure Food Ordinance.
He further submitted that the seized product did not belong to Grameen Danone Food Limited.
The allegations stemmed from a claim that the city inspector seized Grameen Danone鈥檚 packaged 鈥榙ahi鈥� which was labeled as 100 grams, from food products being displayed at the Arift General Store on the Aga Sedek road at Bangshal on November 24, 2010.
After examination by the corporation laboratory, the sample was found adultered.
Yunus lawyer argued that Grameen Danone Food product limited did not manufacture or sell any product in 100 gram containers.
Two others accused in the case include Md Abul Kashem, owner of Arif Hossain Store, and Md Tusher, owner of Amena Store, at Golden Market in Chawk Bazar.
Yunus faced over 150 cases before assuming office as the chief adviser on August 8, 2024, following the ouster of prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled to India amid a student-led mass uprising.
Many of these cases were later dismissed by the courts.
