15 BSS journos, 5 staffs get back jobs
Fifteen journalists and five employees of state-run news agency Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) have got back their jobs in line with a High Court (HC) verdict, as the management withdrew an appeal pending with the Supreme Court (SC) after seven years of their dismissals.
BSS sources said the journalists and staffs who got their jobs back informed the authorities that they will join the office on Thursday (today).
The four-member full bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice MM Ruhul Amin yesterday allowed BSS authorities to withdraw its petition against the HC verdict that had directed the authorities concerned to reinstate the dismissed journalists and employees.
The then BSS management fired 27 journalists and seven employees citing no reason during the past BNP-led four party alliance government and appointed 76 new journalists and employees.
The terminated journalists and employees had filed separate writ petitions with the HC challenging the legality of the termination order.
A division bench of the HC comprising Justice ABM Khairul Haque and Justice Syed Mohammad Ziaul Karim in May 2007, declared their termination orders illegal and also asked the BSS authorities to reinstate their services within two months.
The journalists getting back jobs are Shamir Kanti Borua, Ajit Kumar Sarker, Ashiqun-nabi Chowdhury, Shahnaj Begum, Madhusudan Mandal, Afzal Hossain, Kanai Chakrabarty, AZM Sarwar Chowdhury, Swapan Bose, Halim Azad, Obaidul Gani, Mahfuza Jesmin, Noor-e Jannat Sima, Bithi Zaman Chowdhury and Abu Naser.
The BSS management had filed an appeal with the SC against the HC verdict.
The news agency decided to withdraw the appeal to return the jobs to the dismissed newsmen and the employees at the intervention of the present government, sources said.
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