HC asks govt to explain about compensation

The High Court yesterday issued a rule upon the government to explain why it should not be directed to pay adequate compensation to family members of the students who were killed and injured in the Mirsarai road accident in Chittagong last year.
Home and education secretaries, Chittagong Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board chairman, deputy commissioner, superintendent of police and district education officer of Chittagong, headmasters of Abu Torab High School and Abu Torab Government Primary School, chairmen of both the schools, Mirsharai thana education officer, upazila nirbahi officer and officer-in-charge have been made respondents.
They have been asked to reply to the rule in four weeks.
The HC bench of Justice Farid Ahmed and Justice Sheikh Hassan Arif came up with the rule during hearing on a writ petition jointly filed by three SC lawyers.
Abdul Momin Chowdhury, Nasir Uddin Chowdhury and Saifuddin Ahmed filed the petition as a public interest litigation with the HC on August 11 last year saying that 45 students were killed and 27 others critically injured in a road accident on July 11 last year when they were returning home by a truck after watching a football match in Mirsarai upazila.
They prayed to the court to order the authorities concerned of the government to give Tk 1 (one) crore as compensation to the family members of the students killed and as treatment cost of the injured ones.
The lawyers submitted the petition following reports published in different newspapers on the road accident and after visiting the spot and the family members of the victims, Advocate Momin, lawyer for the petitioners, told The Daily Star.
He said the government had not paid any compensation except some donations to the family members of the victims so far.