Magistrate warned of action for ‘incomplete’ order on Tazreen chairman's bail

A Dhaka court today warned of legal action against a magistrate for "incomplete" order on a bail petition of Tazreen Fashions Ltd chairman in a homicide case filed after a deadly fire at the factory which killed 112 workers.

Judge Md Abdul Majid of the Court of District and Sessions Judges also cancelled the bail of Mahmuda and asked her to surrender before the court in 15 days.

Today's decision came following a government petition against a February 10 order by Chief Judicial Magistrate Md Ismail Hossain granting one-month conditional bail to the Tazreen chairman.

On surrendering before the court of Senior Judicial Magistrate Tajul Islam on February 9 as per a court directive, Mahmuda and her husband Delwar Hossain, also the owner of the factory, sought bail. But the court ordered to send both of them to jail without disposing of their bail petitions.

The next day, Magistrate Md Ismail Hossain granted one-month bail to Mahmuda on health ground but denied bail to Delwar.

Two days later, the government moved Court of District and Sessions Judges challenging Mahmuda’s bail.

According to existing law, when a matter remains pending in a higher court, the lower court order stays as it was. So the bail granted to Mahmuda by the Court of District and Sessions Judges remains stayed.

Today, Judge Md Abdul Majid asked Magistrate Tajul to explain in 15 days why legal action would not be taken against him for his February 9 order.

Magistrate Ismail’s order granting bail to Mahmuda was not "legal and proper" since the February 9 bail petitions were not disposed of, said Judge Majid.

The couple surrendered before the court six weeks after the same court took charges against them into cognisance and issued arrest warrants for them couple in the first-ever move in the country to prosecute garment owners for a factory fire.

In December last year, police pressed homicide charges against 13 people, including Delwar and Mahmuda.

The couple is also facing charges of negligence that led to so many casualties in the blaze.

According to the charge sheet, they had constructed the building as per a faulty plan and illegally used the ground-floor walkway as a warehouse.

Of the 11 other accused, the factory manager, quality manager, engineer and production manager were shown as fugitives in the charge sheet.

Six accused got bail from the High Court and the lower court. Only the security-in-charge is now behind bars.