The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the reinstatement of 988 employees of the National University who were dismissed during the Awami League government鈥檚 tenure between 2011 and 2012.
A seven-member bench headed by chief justice Syed Refaat Ahmed delivered the verdict, directing the university authorities to reinstate the employees in their previous positions with full seniority.
The court, however, left it to up to the university to use its discretion regarding the disbursement of wage arrears on humanitarian grounds, treating the dismissed period as extraordinary leave, the university鈥� lawyer Salahudddin Dolon told 抖阴精品.
The apex court delivered the verdict after allowing the university authorities鈥� appeal it filed in September 2024, challenging the 2016 Appellate Division鈥檚 verdict.
The employees in question were originally appointed between 2003 and 2004 under the then BNP-led alliance government.
Their termination followed a public interest litigation filed by former deputy speaker Fazle Rabbi Miah, which prompted a 2012 High Court ruling declaring the appointments illegal.
In 2016, the Appellate Division also rejected a leave-to-appeal petition filed in 2012 by the dismissed employees, challenging the legality of their termination in a review petition by former liberation war affairs minister AKM Mozzammel Hossain as a third party.
Following the ouster of the Awami League government through a student-led mass uprising on August 5, 2024, the university authorities, , however, filed a petition with the Appellate Division to review its 2016 verdict as per the university鈥檚 syndicate decision taken on September 5, 2024.
The Appellate Division revisited the matter and issued Tuesday鈥檚 directive, setting aside its previous position and granting full relief to the appellants.
Md Nazrul Islam, legal adviser to National University, told 抖阴精品 that the long-drawn-out legal battle was finally resolved after the change in government created scope for judicial reconsideration.
Attorney general Md Asaduzzaman represented the university.
