Regulator moves to lodge stock cases directly with tribunal

Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission has initiated a move that will enable stockmarket related cases to be filed directly with the special tribunal, instead of lower courts.

The stockmarket regulator recently sent a letter to the attorney general, seeking his opinion on the issue.

The matter came to light after the regulator failed to file a case directly with the special tribunal, as the existing ordinance does not allow it.

The regulator currently has to file stockmarket-related cases with the lower court first, and then transfer the cases to the special tribunal, which sometimes takes several months, officials said.

The commission will have to amend the existing ordinance to file any stockmarket-related case directly with the special tribunal, which was formed for quick disposal of share market-related lawsuits.

Before taking any decision on the amendment, the commission wants to know from the attorney general whether there is any bar within the legal framework, the officials said.

Upon receiving the attorney general's opinion, the BSEC would ask the special tribunal judge to specify the shortcomings in the existing ordinance to lodge cases directly with the tribunal.

“The commission is working to amend its ordinance so that the special tribunal can perform more effectively,” said Saifur Rahman, spokesman and an executive director of the BSEC.

The Securities and Exchange Ordinance 1969, which was amended in December 2012, empowered the government to set up special tribunals to deal with stockmarket-related cases, which are transferred to the tribunal from other courts. But there is no clause or indication on filing cases directly with the tribunal.

The special tribunal, since inception, has been dealing with cases that were transferred from different courts.