On Monday (1st January), a labour court in Dhaka found Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus guilty of violating the labour laws of Bangladesh. He was convicted, sentenced to 6 months of simple imprisonment and fined Tk 30000 (~$260).
As per reports, Yunus and three other directors at ‘Grameen Telecom’ violated labour laws by failing to create a welfare fund for the workers in the company. The 83-year-old economist is known for pioneering microfinancing (giving loans less than $100) to the poor in Bangladesh.
The labour court Judge, Sheikh Merina Sultana, noted that 67 Grameen Telecom employees were supposed to be made permanent in the company which did not happen. As per the company’s stated policy, it is supposed to share 5% of the dividends with the staff, which failed to materialise.
A court in Bangladesh sentenced Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus to six months’ imprisonment for labor-law violations in a case his supporters say is politically motivated https://t.co/pJweG45djm pic.twitter.com/BwY3yX9c56
— Reuters (@Reuters) January 1, 2024
Yunus and his colleagues were each sentenced to 6 months of simple imprisonment. However, they managed to secure immediate bail from the court. They have 30 days to appeal against the labour court verdict.
It must be mentioned that the Nobel laureate is currently facing 100 other charges for graft and labour law violations in Bangladesh. While speaking to the media, Muhammad Yunus said, “We are being punished for a crime we did not commit.”
“It was my fate, the nation’s fate. We have accepted this verdict, but will appeal this verdict and continue fighting against this sentence,” he emphasised. Lawyers of Yunus have described the case as ‘meritless, false and ill-motivated.’
While speaking about the matter, prosecutor Khurshid Alam Khan said, “We think business owners will now be more cautious about violating labor laws. No one is above the law.”
Past corruption allegations against Muhammad Yunus
The 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner founded Grameen Bank in 1983 to lend small loans to the poor. He had previously drawn the ire of Bangladeshi PM Sheikh Hasina for ‘sucking blood’ of the poor.
Yunus is being investigated over charges of corruption and fund embezzlement for more than a decade. He was earlier fired as Managing Director of his bank for violating retirement regulations of the Bangladeshi government.
He was also on trial for receiving money in 2013 for receiving money without government permission.
