Dhaka: A Dhaka court on Wednesday issued an arrest warrant against Nobel laureate and Grameen Bank founder Muhammad Yunus after he failed to appear in person before it in a case of an alleged labour law violation.
A judge at a court in Dhaka issued the order Wednesday as sacked workers from Grameen Communications (GC) lodged a complaint saying they were fired because they set up a trade union, court clerk M. Nuruzzaman told AFP.
Yunus, who is chairman of GC, did not attend the hearing as he was abroad. The chief executive officer and a senior manager at the company appeared at the court and secured bail, Nuruzzaman said.
“He (Yunus) left Bangladesh before receiving any summons for appearing before the court. As soon as he returns, an appropriate legal step shall be taken,” Yunus’s lawyer Kazi Ershadul Alam said.
The 79-year-old former economics professor who founded the pioneering poverty-busting micro lender Grameen Bank in 1983, its record in helping to reduce poverty earned him global fame and a Nobel Peace Prize.
But Ms. Hasina has accused Mr. Yunus of “sucking blood” from the poor. In 2013, the government ordered legal action against him on charges of, what it said, was “tax exemption without following due procedure”, misuse of power and violating foreign travel regulations.
