Court to frame charge against Dr Yunus, 13 others

Nobel laureate Dr. Muhammad Yunus.

A Dhaka court Sunday fixed June 12 for passing an order on framing charges against Nobel Laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus and 13 others in a case filed over misappropriation of about Tk 25.22 crore of Grameen Telecom Workers’ Profit Participation Fund.

Judge Syed Arafat Hossain of the Special Judge Court-4 of Dhaka fixed the date. Earlier in the day, the 14 accused including Dr Yunus sought discharge from the case about misappropriation of about Tk 25.22 crore from the Grameen Telecom Workers’ Profit Participation Fund.

During Sunday’s hearing, Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Public Prosecutor Mosharraf Hossain Kazol submitted his arguments in favour of framing charges against the accused. At the same time, defense lawyers including Abdullah-Al-Mamun and Mohammad Shaheenoor Islam submitted their arguments before the court in favour of discharging the accused people, including Dr Yunus.

On May 2, the court granted them bail. Earlier, on April 2, the Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Court of Dhaka accepted the charges pressed against the 14 accused.  On that day, the court transferred the case to the Special Judge Court-4 of Dhaka for the next course of action. 

On February 1, Investigation Officer Gulshan Anwar Prodhan, Deputy Director of the ACC, submitted the charge sheet before the Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Court of Dhaka.

The 13 other accused people are Grameen Telecom Managing Director Nazmul Islam, Directors Ashraful Hassan, Naznin Sultana, Parvin Mahmud, M Shahjahan, Nurjahan Begum and SM Huzzatul Islam Latifee, Sramik-Karmachari Union President Kamruzzaman, General Secretary Firoz Mahmud Hasan and representative Mainul Islam, Jatiya Workers Federation Office Secretary Kamrul Hasan, and lawyers Zafrul Hasan Sharif and Yusuf Ali. - Special Correspondent