Brac Bank seeks SC stay on HC order
Brac Bank Ltd yesterday filed a petition with the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court seeking a stay on its High Court verdict that directed the bank to give Tk 15 lakh in compensation to jute mill worker Jaha Alam, who had suffered in jail for three years instead of the real accused in several corruption cases.
The bank filed the petition through advocate-on-record Joynul Abedin saying that the HC did not direct other banks concerned and the Anti-Corruption Commission to give the compensation to Jaha Alam, ACC lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan told The Daily Star.
He also said Brac Bank's stay petition may be heard before the court of chamber judge of the Appellate Division today.
On September 30 this year, the HC directed the Brac Bank Ltd to give Tk 15 lakh in compensation to jute mill worker Jaha Alam in a month after receiving the verdict as its two officials Faisal Kayes and Sabina Sharmin supplied the photo and information of Jaha Alam instead of real accused Abu Salek to the investigation officers of the ACC.
Later, the investigation officers implicated Jaha Alam in the corruption cases, the court observed.
Delivering verdict on a suomuto (voluntary) rule, the HC ordered Brac Bank Ltd to submit a report to this court through the SC registrar general's office after complying with the directive, said ACC lawyer Khurshid Alam.
The HC bench of Justice FRM Nazmul Ahasan and Justice KM Kamrul Kader also cautioned the ACC to remain careful in conducting inquiry into the corruption cases and in appointing investigation officers so that such incident like that of Jaha Alam does not take place in future.
The bench observed that ACC investigation officers had negligence and incompetence in conducting inquiry into Jaha Alam cases as they were young, but they had not any malafide intention.
The HC bench on January 28 last year issued the rule asking the authorities concerned of the ACC, Brac Bank Ltd and government why they should not be directed to release Jaha Alam and to compensate him for his suffering in jail.
The bench came up with the rule following a report published in the Prothom Alo, headlined "Wrong accused in jail in 33 cases: Sir, I am Jaha Alam, not Salek."
The court issued the rule after SC lawyer Amit Das Gupta, now a deputy attorney general, placed the newspaper reports before the HC bench for necessary order. On February 3 last year, the HC directed the jail authorities to release Jaha Alam from prison immediately and accordingly he got released the same day.
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