Dhaka, 1 January – Nobel laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus, along with Grameen Telecom’s Chairman and three others, has been sentenced to six months in jail and fined Tk25,000 each by Dhaka’s third labour court. The verdict comes in response to a case filed on charges of violating labour laws.

In a statement following the verdict, Dr Yunus expressed, “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 against it and continue fighting against this sentence.”

The court, while acknowledging Dr Yunus’s global efforts against poverty, emphasized that he was being tried as the chairman of Grameen Telecom. The charges of labor law violations were found proven against him and the other accused.

The case was filed on 9 September 2021, following an inspection by the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) at Grameen Telecom. Violations included not regularizing 101 staff and failing to establish a welfare fund for laborers.

Judge Begum Sheikh Merina Sultana pronounced the verdict on 1 January, granting Dr Yunus a month’s bail on the condition of filing an appeal. The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court had earlier dismissed Dr Yunus’s leave to appeal petition.

DIFE lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan stated that they have sought the highest punishment for Dr Muhammad Yunus and the three others. The High Court, on 8 August, had scrapped a rule challenging the labor court’s indictment order, leading to the recent verdict