UCBL writ hearing likely to end by Feb 7
Thursday, 21 January 2010
Mohammad Mufazzal
The hearing on the writ petition of the United Commercial Bank Limited (UCBL) is likely to be completed within the tenure of the present Chief Justice (CJ) who is scheduled to go for retirement on February 7, sources said.
The investors involved with the move said the matter is supposed to be placed before the top position on January 26. As two justices of the present bench were present in the previous hearing of the UCBL, it would take at best two working days to finish the hearing, they expected.
The investors alleged that the writ petition was first mentioned for hearing in March 2009. Later, the matter was placed in the cause list of the Supreme Court, but its hearing was not completed, as the petitioner was reluctant. Then the investors staged demonstration several times at the bank's head office. At one stage, being agitated, they ransacked the office.
As per the court direction, the UCBL board fixed July 30, 2008 as the record date for entitlement of dividends in the form of 90 per cent and 50 per cent bonus shares. This was a combined offer for the years 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006.
According to this announcement, a number of investors bought UCBL shares at prices between Tk 7,000 and Tk 7,999. Under this circumstance, three shareholders, who did get dividends of 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002, filed the cases demanding their due dividends.
Subsequently, the UCBL again suspended the record date in August 2009 because of injunction by the Appellate Division, the investors said.
The UCBL fails to pay dividends, as it could not hold pending AGMs during the last 11 years since 1997 because of cases filed by some shareholders.
The hearing on the writ petition of the United Commercial Bank Limited (UCBL) is likely to be completed within the tenure of the present Chief Justice (CJ) who is scheduled to go for retirement on February 7, sources said.
The investors involved with the move said the matter is supposed to be placed before the top position on January 26. As two justices of the present bench were present in the previous hearing of the UCBL, it would take at best two working days to finish the hearing, they expected.
The investors alleged that the writ petition was first mentioned for hearing in March 2009. Later, the matter was placed in the cause list of the Supreme Court, but its hearing was not completed, as the petitioner was reluctant. Then the investors staged demonstration several times at the bank's head office. At one stage, being agitated, they ransacked the office.
As per the court direction, the UCBL board fixed July 30, 2008 as the record date for entitlement of dividends in the form of 90 per cent and 50 per cent bonus shares. This was a combined offer for the years 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006.
According to this announcement, a number of investors bought UCBL shares at prices between Tk 7,000 and Tk 7,999. Under this circumstance, three shareholders, who did get dividends of 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002, filed the cases demanding their due dividends.
Subsequently, the UCBL again suspended the record date in August 2009 because of injunction by the Appellate Division, the investors said.
The UCBL fails to pay dividends, as it could not hold pending AGMs during the last 11 years since 1997 because of cases filed by some shareholders.