The High Court on Tuesday asked the government to explain in four weeks why their inaction that led to damage the future of job seekers being refused to board to Malaysia despite paying agents would not be declared illegal.
The court also asked the expatriates’ welfare and employment ministry and recruiting agents to explain in four weeks why they would not be directed to return to the aspirant migrants’ money paid with interests to the agents to board them in Malaysia. Â
The bench of Justice Mustafa Zaman Islam and Justice SM Masud Hossain Dolan passed the order hearing a writ petition filed by a Supreme Court lawyer Tanvir Ahmed.
The court also asked the ministry to submit the court about update report of the case in each three months.
The court said that it found negligence on the part of the government authorities over the process of sending the job aspirant to Malaysia.
The court came up with the directives after an expatriates’ welfare and overseas employment ministry-formed probe committee submitted its report over the sufferings of the aspirant migrants on Monday.
The ministry recommended for legal action against about 100 recruiting agents for their alleged negligence and failure to send over 17,000 Malaysia-aspirant migrants.
As per the probe body’s recommendations, the ministry served the show-cause notices on the recruiting agents, asking them to explain their professional negligence in sending the job seekers to Malaysia.
It also asked the recruiting agents to return the amounts to the aspirant migrants by July 18, following the probe body’s another recommendation.
Submitting the report to the High Court, the ministry informed the court of recommendations by the probe body in compliance of an order issued by the court on July 9.  Â
On June 2, the ministry formed a six-member committee, headed by an additional secretary, over the failure of 17,777 aspirant migrants to fly to Malaysia.
Although the government’s rate for a Malaysia-bound migrant was Tk 78,000, the individual aspirant paid Tk 4 to 6 lakh each to recruiting agents.
Out of the17,777 migrants, 3,000 made complaints against the recruiting agents and demanded a refund of their money.  Â
The court set July 21 for passing an order on the writ petition on the issue.
The Malaysian authorities allowed 100 private recruiting agencies to send workers from Bangladesh. Due to mismanagement and corruption in the recruitment process, the agencies, however, failed to send approximately 17,777 workers before the May 31 deadline set by Malaysia.
