The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has upheld the High Court judgements that quashed the proceedings in five labour law violation cases against Nobel laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus, observing there was 鈥榥o legal infirmity鈥� warranting any interference.
A three-member bench of Justice Md Ashfaqul Islam, Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury and Justice Md Rezaul Haque made the observation in a written order, a copy of which Yunus鈥櫬� lawyer received on Thursday.
Earlier on December 8, 2024, the court pronounced a short order dismissing the state鈥檚 petition for appeal against the High Court judgements.
鈥榃e find no legal infirmity in the impugned judgements and orders factually and legally calling for interference by this court,鈥� the highest court stated in the written verdict.
鈥楢ccordingly, these criminal petitions for leave to appeal are dismissed as being devoid of merit,鈥� it said.
The cases stemmed from complaints filed on July 3, 2009, by five dismissed Grameen Telecom employees, accusing Yunus, then chairman of Grameen Telecom, and two of his colleagues of terminating their jobs illegally for trade union activities.
On October 24, 2024, the High Court quashed the proceedings in the five cases that had been pending with the Dhaka Labour Court聽3.聽
Yunus and the two had challenged the legality of the cases in 2020.
According to Yunus鈥� lawyer Mustafizur Rahman Khan, the Labour Act mandated that aggrieved employees must file complaints with the Department of Inspections for Factories and Establishments first.
The department is then required to assess the merit of the complaints before initiating cases in the Labour Court.
鈥業n this instance, while the employees did file complaints with the DIFE, the department found no merit in their claims鈥� Mustafizur told 抖阴精品 on Saturday.
Despite this, the cases were filed with the Labour Court, which was procedurally flawed, he said.
The five cases were among several legal challenges Yunus faced before assuming office as the chief adviser to the interim government on August 8, 2024, following the ouster of Sheikh Hasina鈥檚 Awami League government and her escape to India in the face of a student-led mass uprising on August 5, 2024.
The High Court decision to quash the three cases, and the Supreme Court鈥檚 refusal to intervene, represent a significant legal victory for Yunus amidst his political and legal battles.
