Apex court clears way for trial against Grameenphone
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has dismissed the leave to appeal of Grameenphone challenging the validity of 22 cases filed by its terminated employees in the Dhaka Labour Court.
Lawyers said as per the order of the Appellate Division, there is no bar to continue the trial of 22 cases.
The Appellate Division bench of Chief Justice Hasan Foez Siddique passed the order on Sunday (6 August).
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Barrister Taposh Kanti Baul, the lawyer of an employee, confirmed the matter to The Business Standard.
The Grameenphone management terminated around 200 union members on 24 July 2012, including seven union leaders, to stop the employees' movement, according to the Grameenphone Employees Union formed on 14 June 2012.
The company later offered a package to the terminated union members – to sign resignation letters and exit. Everyone except three union leaders, Adeeba Zerin Chowdhury, communications secretary, GPEU; Rasulul Amin Murad, vice president, GPEU and Omar Faruq, president of GPEU did not accept the offer and challenged it in court.
The country's largest mobile network operator, Grameenphone authorities filed a writ petition with the High Court in 2015, challenging the legality of the cases in the labour court.
After hearing, the High Court in 2019 rejected the rule issued following the writ petition. The mobile operator then moved to the apex court, but after hearing the Grameenphone's petitions, the apex court rejected those on 6 August.
