The High Court on Thursday ordered the authorities concerned of Etihad Airways to pay Tk 20.0 million as compensation to the two Bangladeshi women passengers who had been harassed by the airline staff at the Abu Dhabi International Airport in June 2011.
The High Court bench of Justice Md Ashraful Kamal and Justice Razik-Al-Jalil delivered the verdict after hearing a writ petition filed by Tanzeen Bristy, one of the passengers who were assaulted at the airport.
The airline has been asked to pay the amount within 60 days, said Advocate Manzill Murshid who appeared in the court for the petitioner.
The court said in its observation that the nature of torture that two women have been subjected to at the airport cannot be measured in fines. The court also warned the airline saying that they should not treat any passenger in future considering their gender or race.
Tanzeen Bristy and Nahid Sultana Juthi, enroute to Canada by an Etihad Airways flight, were allegedly harassed by the airline staff at Abu Dhabi International Airport on June 28, 2011 and were forced back to Dhaka at their own cost over a brawl that sparked due to a fault of a staffer.
Following the same writ petition, the HC on July 14, 2011 issued a rule asking respondents including the authorities of Etihad Airways to explain as to why they should not be directed to pay compensation to the victims and as to why appropriate legal action should not be taken against them for committing the fault.
Later on January 10, 2019 the High Court directed the Etihad Airways to hand over the video footage containing the alleged incident of harassing and torturing the two women to the inquiry committee of Bangladesh foreign ministry in the next 15 days.
The HC also asked the inquiry committee of the foreign ministry to submit the probe report before it within one month after getting the video footage from the airline, and fixed March 06, 2019 for passing further order on this issue.
Manzill Murshid said Etihad Airways claimed that they (Etihad Airways) had no fault in the incident; rather the passengers including the writ petitioner were unruly in the occurrence on June 28, 2011.
After completing the hearing on the writ petition, the High Court delivered the verdict on Thursday fining the airline.
bikashju@gmail.com
