Jihad’s family financially compensated at last

In keeping with an order of the High Court, Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defence and Bangladesh Railway on Sunday paid Tk20 lakh as compensation to the family of Jihad, who tragically died after falling into an abandoned deep tube-well in Dhaka’s Shahjahanpur area on December 26, 2014.

Jihad's father confirmed that the two government entities each paid Tk10 lakh through cheque and pay-order as compensation to the family, reports UNB.

Earlier, on July 3, the High Court had summoned the Bangladesh Railway director general (DG) to appear before it on August 14 and explain the failure to execute its earlier order to pay the compensation to Jihad’s family.

On March 1, the High Court issued a contempt of court rule on three government officials for not implementing the court order to pay the compensation.

The court had asked Bangladesh Railway DG Md Amjad Hosain, Fire Service and Civil Defence DG Brig Gen Ali Ahmed Khan and its Director Maj AKM Shakil Newaj to respond to the rule within two weeks.

A legal notice was also served to defendants on January 22 when they did not provide the compensation money to the family.

Later, the contempt petition was filed as the defendants did not reply to the legal notice.

On February 18, 2016, the High Court had asked the government to compensate Tk20 lakh to the family of four-year-old Jihad, who met the premature end of his life inside an unsealed 600-foot abandoned shaft of a water pump at Shahjahanpur Railway Colony.

Jihad’s body was pulled out from the abandoned shaft 23 hours after he fell into it.

Advocate Md Abdul Halim had filed the petition with the High Court on December 28, 2014 seeking its directives for providing Tk30 lakh as compensation to Jihad's family.