The commerce ministry yesterday forwarded the names of three former secretaries who can serve as a member of the interim board being formed by the High Court to assess the liabilities of the controversial e-commerce platform Evaly.

Maksudur Rahman Patwari, former land secretary; Md Rezaul Ahsan, former secretary to the ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives; and Yakub Ali Patwari, former chairman of Land Reform Board, have been shortlisted by the commerce ministry.

The High Court may pass an order next week after reviewing the proposed names, said Sayed Mahsib Hossain, whose writ petition elicited the move.

Last month, Hossain on behalf of his client Md Farhad Hossen, an aggrieved Evaly customer, filed a writ seeking dissolution of the e-commerce platform and distributing the proceeds among creditors.

Hossen had purchased a washing machine from Evaly in May but never received the product.

Subsequently, the court placed a freeze on the sale and transfer of Evaly's assets and also sought all relevant documents from the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms to decide whether a board can be formed to run the company.

After examining the documents, a High Court bench of Justice Muhammad Khurshid Alam Sarkar on October 12 called for forming a four-member interim board at the earliest for assessing the liabilities of Evaly, which is said to be upwards of Tk 1,000 crore.

The board will consist of a retired justice, a jurist, a secretary and a chartered accountant, and the court sought names of three former or incumbent secretaries and one additional secretary to serve as a member.