Dhaka Bureau: Nobel laureate economist Dr. 176 world leaders have given an open letter to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina asking for suspension of the case against Muhammad Yunus. In this incident, Dhaka University (DU) Awami League-supported teachers’ organization Blue Dal has expressed deep concern. Today, Sunday (03 September), the convenor of the organization, Professor Dr. Sitesh Chandra Bachar and joint-convener Professor Dr. Md. Amjad Ali and Professor Dr. Md. 866 teachers of the university expressed their concern in a statement signed by Rafiqul Islam.
Dr. Terming the statement on behalf of Yunus as ‘unsolicited and unintended’, the teachers’ society calls on everyone to refrain from interfering in the judicial and state activities of independent sovereign Bangladesh by making statements.
In this Dr. Muhammed Yunus has called on those making the statement to respect the laws and customs of Bangladesh. In addition, the Blue Party of Awami Panthi teachers’ organization of Dhaka University has also called to understand the legal and constitutional rules.
The statement said, “Professor Dr. The statement made in defense of the interests of Muhammad Yunus, which claims that there is an attack on human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Bangladesh, is baseless and baseless. Such a statement about a case under the prevailing law of the country is contrary to the rule of law and human rights. It is contrary to international law, customs and etiquette and amounts to disrespect for the independent judiciary and sovereignty of a state. We are deeply concerned about such unwanted interference on the judiciary and sovereignty of Bangladesh.
The basic philosophy of all historical changes in the world, including the United Nations Declaration of Universal Human Rights, the Declaration of Independence of the United States, the context of the French Revolution, the British Bill of Rights, the independence of Bangladesh and the drafting of the Constitution, is to ensure the legal equality of citizens. The declarants are also known to be law-abiding and principled citizens of their respective countries. As a result, they have denied their principles and ideals through such biased statements.
It should be noted that recently the former President of the United States, Donald Trump, has also been arrested and faced trial. This shows that no one is above the law. However, their stance on Bangladesh indicates a contradiction in terms of rule of law, human rights and democracy.
Blue Party leaders said in a statement, “In an independent sovereign state, the law is governed by its own rules.” If the complaints are reviewed by a panel of impartial judges without taking into account that normal matter, surely Dr. Claims by the commentators that Yunus would be acquitted of the anti-corruption and labor law cases would threaten ongoing judicial proceedings and obstruct justice. Such attempts to protect an individual’s interests in violation of existing state laws and judicial principles are unprecedented and discriminatory. Despite this, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina urged to send their representatives to monitor transparency in the judicial process.
Noting that there have been criminal cases against Nobel laureates in different countries of the world before this, it is further said, ‘Some Nobel laureates have been punished in these cases. For example, the court of Belarus sentenced the Nobel Peace Prize winner Ales Bialyatsi to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment. He was acquitted in a tax evasion case filed against Nobel Peace Prize-winning journalist Maria Ressa in the Philippines. These Nobel laureates have accepted the court’s verdict out of respect for the court. They did not turn to anyone to escape the judicial process.
Dr. Numerous cases are pending against Muhammad Yunus. He did not agree to leave the post even at the age of 70, defying the law to retire at the age of 60 as the MD of Grameen Bank. After losing the legal battle in the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh in this case, he lobbied international organizations and influential countries to regain the position of Grameen Bank. Besides, there are various allegations against him including revenue evasion, illegal transfer of funds, violation of labor laws and abuse of power. Recently, the charge of tax evasion filed against him in the Supreme Court of Bangladesh has been proved and he has accepted the court’s verdict and paid the levied tax,” added the teachers of DU’s blue team.
