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to the same law; the authorities’ unusually aggressive and potentially unforeseeable interpretation of the Labour Law; and procedural irregularities.
According to the statement, Prof Yunus’s supporters say that the case is part of a relentless campaign by Hasina’s administration to discredit and undermine him.
Over 150 cases have reportedly been brought against Yunus and his affiliated companies since Hasina came to power in 2009.
A vocal critic of Yunus, she has described him as a “bloodsucker of the poor” and, on another occasion, suggested that he should be “plunged into the Padma River”.
The concerns around the proceedings against Yunus are especially relevant as the growing government crackdown on its critics before the January 2024 general election prompted the CIVICUS Monitor to give Bangladesh’s civic space its worst rating, with reports of sweeping arrests of opposition figures.
Hundreds of global leaders and Nobel Laureates, including former US President Barack Obama and former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, have signed two open letters in which they described the recent cases against Yunus as “continuous judicial harassment” and expressed their “profound concern”.
On January 1, 2024, less than seven months after the charges were framed, Prof Yunus was convicted and sentenced to six months imprisonment and a fine -- just a week before the “disputed general election” returned Hasina to power.
The case was based on alleged violations of Bangladesh’s Labour Law by Grameen Telecom, a company that Yunus founded in the 1990s to help the poor acquire cell phones and use them to earn a living.
Yunus, who serves as the company’s non-executive chairperson of the board, was convicted alongside three other Grameen Telecom Board members targeted for prosecution.
There are eight members in the board of directors.
All four defendants appealed against their convictions on January 28, 2024, and the Labour Appellate Tribunal has stayed the lower court’s verdict till March 3 (today).
Yunus and his co-defendants are currently on bail.
Meanwhile, a different court will hold a hearing in another case against Yunus and members of the Grameen Telecom Board today.
CEC urges EC
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Habibul expressed deep shock and sorrow over the death of journalist Obhisruti Shastri, who used to cover EC beat, and others in the Bailey Road fire incident that claimed at least 46 lives.
Those present at the discussion observed a minute of silence for the deceased.
Election commissioners Brig Gen (retd) Ahsan Habib Khan, Rashida Sultana and Md Alamgir also spoke at the discussion.
Earlier while inaugurating the day’s programmes, Habibul announced that the country now has 12,18,50,160 eligible voters.
Of them, 6,21,44,587 are male, 5,97,04,641 are female, and 932 voters are hijras, he said.
According to the EC’s factsheet, about 26.99 lakh new voters were enlisted in the country’s voter list since March 2, 2023.
The voter growth was 2.26 percent over the last year.