Grameenphone CEO Granted Bail in ‘Fraud and Theft’ Case
On Sunday, 26 October, Grameenphone CEO Yasir Azman, along with two other senior officials, secured bail after surrendering before the Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate, Rounak Jahan Taqir, in a case filed by a former employee alleging “fraud and theft.” The other two granted bail are Fazlul Haq, acting chairman of Grameenphone’s trustee board, and Chief Human Resource Officer Saeeda Tahia Hossain.
Following the hearing on the bail application, the court approved the requests, confirmed defense lawyer Ehsanul Haque Somaji.
Rakibul Azam, a former employee, had filed the case on 26 September. The court accepted the case and summoned the accused to appear on 26 October. Accordingly, the three Grameenphone officials surrendered to the court in the morning, and the hearing began at noon.
Ehsanul Haque Somaji told the court, “Rakibul Azam is a former employee of Grameenphone. He filed the case based on a disputed contract. The court issued a summons for the accused to appear. The accused are law-abiding and respectful of the court. We seek bail for them. Rakibul Azam has also filed a similar case in the Labour Court. A writ petition has been filed in the High Court, which issued a rule suspending the case proceedings. The so-called allegations of fraud and theft have no substance in the FIR. The case was filed to harass the accused, who hold important positions. We request bail and assure the court that it will not be misused.”
Khorhed Mia Alam, a member of the Dhaka Bar Association’s ad hoc committee, added, “The accused are reputable individuals. Considering their status, we are requesting bail.”
On the other hand, the plaintiff’s lawyer, Rokeya Akter Roksana, opposed the bail, stating, “The plaintiff is owed over BDT 800,000. He went to Grameenphone to recover the dues. He was asked to sign a contract stamp acknowledging receipt, which was promised to be paid via cheque. Later, they claimed there was a problem, leaving him running from place to place.”
With court permission, Rakibul Azam clarified, “This case is unrelated to the Labour Court case. After losing in the Labour Court, they went to the High Court and obtained a six-month stay order.”
After the hearing, the court granted bail to the accused on BDT 5,000 bond each.
According to case details, Rakibul Azam worked at Grameenphone from 2006 to 2021. Between 2010 and 2012, while employed, he was entitled to certain outsourced payments distributed among employees. The company owed him BDT 829,998 for this work. On 10 November, the plaintiff was called to collect his dues. Upon attempting to retrieve the payment, the accused obtained a signature on a BDT 300 stamp and sent him back without the money, subsequently delaying payment through various means.
Grameenphone issued a statement regarding the case, saying, “This is a deliberately harassing case filed to intimidate our senior management. We have full faith in the law and trust that justice will prevail in the honorable court.”
