GP CEO gets bail in case filed by former employee

Grameenphone Chief Executive Officer Yasir Azman and two senior officials appeared before a Dhaka court on Sunday and secured bail in a criminal case filed by a former employee who has accused them of fraud, criminal breach of trust and non-payment of dues pending for more than a decade.

The three surrendered before the court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Raunak Jahan Taki after a summon was issued last month, and the magistrate granted them bail on a Tk 5,000 bond each after hearing.

The case, filed on 26 September by former Grameenphone employee Rakibul Azam, accuses the company's senior management of withholding Tk 828,998 owed to him for outsourcing-related work carried out between 2010 and 2012.

According to the case statement, Rakibul repeatedly sought payment over the years but was not paid.

He alleged that when he was called to the office to collect the amount, he was made to sign a Tk 300 non-judicial stamp paper on the assurance that a cheque would be issued, but no payment followed. He claims that the accused continued to avoid settling the dues despite repeated follow-ups.

During the hearing, the plaintiff's lawyer opposed the bail, stating that the dues remained unpaid even after years of communication with the company.

Rakibul also addressed the court with permission from the magistrate, stating that the matter had been pending for a long time and that he had been compelled to seek legal remedy after other attempts failed.

The defence counsel for the accused argued that the case was motivated and aimed at harassment and said the allegations were false.

Grameenphone later issued a statement calling the case "motivated for harassment" and expressing confidence that the company's senior management would be cleared.

The bail hearing has drawn attention to the fact that the issue escalated only after the court intervened, raising questions over why the dues were not resolved internally and why the company did not settle the alleged outstanding amount before the matter reached the stage of criminal proceedings.

The case will now proceed to further hearings, where the court is expected to examine the claims in details.

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