The High Court has summoned owners of ten tanneries for not complying with its previous order of relocating hazardous tanneries to Savar.
The tannery owners will have to appear before the court on April 10 by 10:30am to explain why they did not comply with the order of shifting factories from Hazaribagh in the capital.
The High Court bench of Justice Syed Muhammad Dastagir Husain and Justice AKM Shahidul Huq came up with the order being moved by a petition yesterday.
The owners who have been asked to appear are: Rana Leather Industries’ Managing Director Arefin Shamsul Alamin, Juliet Enterprise’s owner Sayedul Haque Master, Pubali Tanneries’ Mahbubur Rahman, Rumi Leader Industries’ Gias Uddin Ahmed Pathan, Salam Tanneries’ Abdus Salam, Karim Leader Unit 2 owner Rezaul Karim Ansari, Mahin Tanneries’ Abdul Owdud Mia, Nabipur Tanneries’ Abdul Wahab, Asia Tanneries’ Mofiz Mia and Paramount tanneries’ Md Akbar Hossain.
Lawyer Manzil Morshed stood for the petitioner, who said the High Court in 2001 had asked for relocating the tanneries from Hazaribagh. On June 23, 2009, the court again fixed February 24, 2010 as the deadline for relocation.
The state prayed the court several time to extend time while the last deadline expired on April 30, 2011. As the order was not followed by the owners, Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh - a rights organisation - lodged a contempt of court petition.
After the owners failed several times to comply with court orders, a contempt of court ruling was finally issued by the court on August 11, 2015, asking why punitive actions should not be taken against the ten owners.
Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh lodged a fresh petition seeking appearance of the ten owners before the court, which was heard by the High Court bench yesterday.
“Government asked the owners to shift by last December. The ten owners did not respond to it, which made the court to issue summon order,” said the lawyer.