A Dhaka Court yesterday issued arrest warrants against six fugitive accused including Tazreen Fashions Limited owners Delwar Hossain and his wife, a year after the tragic deaths of over 110 workers at the factory.
Senior Judicial Magistrate Wasim Sheikh issued the warrants after taking into cognisance the charge sheet filed against 13 people.
The court also ordered the investigation officer and the police station concerned to submit a report before the court whether the fugitive people were arrested or not by February 25.
Investigation Officer AKM Mohosin-uz Zaman Khan, also a CID inspector, pressed the charges on December 22.
If the charges filed under penal code – are proved, the accused may be punished by maximum life imprisonment or minimum seven years’ rigorous imprisonment.
The fugitive accused are Delwar Hossain, also the managing director, his wife and Chairman Mahmuda Akhter, Factory Manager Abdur Razzaq, Quality Control Manager Shahiduzzaman Dulal, Engineer M Mahabubul Morshed and Production Manager Mobarak Hossain Manju.
The remaining seven are Administrative Officer Dulal, Security-in-Charge Anisur Rahman, Security Supervisor Al-Amin, Store-in-Charge Hamidul Islam Lavlu and Al-Amin, loader Shamim Miah and security guard Rana alias Anwarul. Of them, all but Anisur are on bail.
The IO said the prosecution would produce 104 witnesses in the case.
According to the charges, the accused did not allow the workers to get out of the factory saying that the fire alarm was part of “drill procedures,” the court’s additional public prosecutor Anwarul Kabir Babul told the Dhaka Tribune.
The November 24 fire at Tazreen Fashions at Nishchintapur of Ashulia raised a wave of concern among national and international community over the standard of factory buildings in Bangladesh.