‘Violation of Labour Law’: Prof Yunus pleads not guilty

Nobel Laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus told a Dhaka court yesterday that he was innocent after the judge read out the charges in a labour law violation case.

Yunus also submitted a statement before the court.

Sheikh Merina Sultana, chairman of the Third Labour Court of Dhaka, then set November 16 for arguments in the case, Khaja Tanvir Ahmed, a defence lawyer, told The Daily Star.

Prof Yunus, also chairman of Grameen Telecom, and its top officials -- Ashraful Hassan, Nurjahan Begum, and Mohammad Shahjahan -- appeared before the court around noon.

Earlier, the court recorded statements of four prosecution witnesses in the case.

On June 6, it framed charges against the accused, including Prof Yunus.

On September 9, 2021, Labour Inspector (general) SM Arifuzzaman of the Inspection for Factories and Establishments Department (IFED) filed the case with the court.

According to the case documents, IFED officials on August 16, 2021, inspected the office of Grameen Telecom in the capital's Mirpur and found several violations of labour laws.

On August 19 that year, the department sent a letter to the authorities of Grameen Telecom, mentioning that 67 of its employees were supposed to be made permanent employees. But it was not done, the case statement said.

Besides, the employee's participation and welfare funds were yet to be formed, and five percent of the company's dividends supposed to be paid to the workers were not paid, it added.