Procedural lapses stymie the operation of special tribunal on capital market

Some procedural complexities have slowed the rate of transferring the share scam cases to the Special Tribunal on Capital Market from the upper court, officials said.
As a result, the tribunal may sit idle unless the flow of transferring capital market related cases is accelerated.
Presently, the tribunal is dealing with only two cases. And the progress of one of these two cases is not up to the mark as the securities regulator is yet to produce witness in the tribunal.
According to records, a total of 22 capital market related cases are included in the list of Special Tribunal. Among the cases, 14 were stayed by High Court (HC) and the cases are yet to be transferred to the tribunal.
The tribunal so far delivered the verdict of four cases, transferred two cases to CMM court and has been dealing the remaining two cases.
The officials of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) said they are trying to transfer the cases which were stayed by the upper court.
"Due to some procedural complexities the progress of transferring cases is yet to be up to the mark. But we are trying," said a senior official of the securities regulator on the condition of anonymity.  
During the hearing of the cases, the judge of the tribunal earlier expressed concern over insufficient cases.
The latest case stayed by the HC was the Chittagong Cement Clinkers & Grinding Company (CCCGC). Former DSE President Rakibur Rahman, former DSE Director Shahidul Huque Bulbul and former CCCGC chairman and managing director Abu Tayab are accused in the case.
On completion of hearing and cross examination, the tribunal fixed November 8 for delivering the verdict. On November 3, the HC stayed the case of CCCGC following a writ petition filed challenging a section of the Securities and Exchange Ordinance, 1969.   
The only two cases which are being dealt with the tribunal are Saudi-Bangladesh Industrial and Agricultural Investment Company and Premium Securities.
The Tribunal Sunday fixed November 17 for next hearing of the two cases. The securities regulator is yet to produce the witness in the case of SABINCO and sought more time.
Earlier, on September 13 last, A Rouf Chowdhury, chairman of Rangs Group, Sayed H Chowdhury, chairman of HRC Group, and two other individuals got bail from the tribunal in the case of Premium Securities.  
The Tribunal delivered verdicts of four cases. On August 3, the tribunal delivered its maiden verdict and sent Mahbub Sarwar to jail for two years for his involvement with manipulation of stock prices through social networking sites in 2010.
On August 31 last, the tribunal sentenced the managing director and a director of Chic Textile to imprisonment for four years in the case related to 1996 stock market scam.
On October 27, the tribunal acquitted Sattaruzzaman Shamim and another prime accused Nabiullah Nabi in a case filed for carrying out the illegal business of placement shares. Nabi died under a running train before the case was started in the tribunal.
On January 2 this year, the government set up the Special Tribunal in a gazette notification under the Securities and Exchange Ordinance (SEO)-1969 aiming to quickly dispose of the cases relating to the stock market.
The government, on February 24, appointed District Judge Humayun Kabir at the tribunal.
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