Court Correspondent :
Two factory inspectors on Wednesday secured bail after they surrendered to the court in the murder case filed in connection with the collapse of Rana Plaza building.
Senior Judicial Magistrate Shahzadi Fahmid of Dhaka granted bail to two inspectors- Engineer Yusuf Ali and Engineer Shahidul Islam in the case filed in connection with the country’s worst industrial disaster.
Earlier, they remained fugitive for long to avoid their arrests in the case over the collapse that had killed more than 1100 workers in 2013. Sheikh Baharul Islam, lawyers of the two accused, sought bail to the court.
Earlier, on February 8, a court of Dhaka sent Rajuk building inspector Awlad Hossain to the jail rejecting his bail pleas in the case. On December 21, 2015 the court took cognizance of the charge sheet in the murder case and passed issued warrants against 24 accused people. The two cases were filed on April 24, 2013.
The collapse of Rana Plaza led to the death of at least 1,136 people, mostly garment workers on April 24, 2013. The building, which housed five garment factories, was built on a swamp and some of its upper floors were added illegally.
On June 1, 2015, over two years after the Rana Plaza incident, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of police submitted two charge sheets of the cases to the court against 42 people, including Rana Plaza owner Sohel Rana. Of the accused people, 17 were common in the two charge sheets of the CID.
Rana’s father Abdul Khalek and mother Marjina Begum and 12 government
officials were among the accused. Five hundred ninety-four people have been witnesses in the killing case while 135 in the other case.
A day after the collapse Rajuk official Helaluddin filed a case with Savar Model Police Station against Rana for violating the Bangladesh National Building Code, while police filed a murder case accusing six people, including Rana on April 25, 2013. Later, police arrested Rana on April 28, 2013.
A total of 1,117 bodies were recovered from the spot of Savar after the incident. Later, 19 injured garment workers died during their medical treatment in different hospitals. Seriously injured 78 victims ultimately have become disabled. The bodies of 844 workers were handed over to the kith and kin of the victims. Besides, the dead, 1170 were injured in the deadly incident.
