Collapsed Rana Plaza owner Sohel Rana and 17 others were charged with building code violation in a case filed for the collapse of the eight-storey building at Savar in Dhaka in 2013 that killed at least 1,137 people and injured scores.
Dhaka additional chief metropolitan magistrate Mohammad Mostafizur Rahman also posted for August 23 the commencement of the formal trial through recording testimonies of the prosecution witnesses.
The court framed the charges rejecting petitions filed by 13 accused for their discharge from the case.
Of the 18 accused, two including Sohel Rana are now in jail, 11 including Rana’s parents are on bail and the rest five are still in hiding.
According to the charges, the 18 accused including Rana Plaza owners violated the building code and illegally extended the eight storey complex which was initially approved for a six-storey shopping mall.
The 18 accused included Rana’s parents, who jointly owned the building with him, and the then Savar municipal mayor Mohammad Refatullah.
The then Savar municipal mayor and other officials were charged with falsification of documents to approve the extensions of the building, while owners of factories housed in the building were charged with illegal installation of heavy
equipment including generators in the building.
Criminal Investigation Department assistant superintendent of police Bijoy Krishna Kar, also the investigation officer of the case, submitted the charge sheet on June 1, 2015.
On April 24, 2013, the eight-storey Rana Plaza, which had housed five apparel factories, a shopping mall and a bank, collapsed, leaving at least 1,137 people, mostly apparel workers, killed and about 2,000 maimed or injured.
Three criminal cases – two by the government and the other on behalf of a dependant of a deceased worker – were filed for the building collapse on charge of murder and building code violation.
Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha official Helaluddin filed one of the cases against building owner Sohel Rana for structural fault in the nine-story building, construction of the structure with substandard materials and violating the National Building Code.
Another case was filed by Savar police station sub-inspector Wali Ashraf against Rana, his father Abdul Khalek and owners of five apparel factories housed in the building for the loss of lives.
Sheuli Akter, wife of victim Jahangir Alam, whose body was recovered from the debris of Rana plaza, filed the other case against Rana, New Wave Style owner Bazlus Samad Adnan and the chief engineer of Savar municipal council.
A sessions court in Dhaka on December 21, 2015 took cognisance of the charges pressed against 42 accused, including Sohel Rana, in the murder case.
Public prosecutor of Dhaka district and session judge’s court Abdul Mannan, said that the government was yet to sanction the trial of the government officials in the murder case.
The prosecution listed 594 people as witnesses in the murder case while 135 people were named witnesses in the case filed for violating the Bangladesh National Building Code.
Source: New Age
