AFTER road accidents or launch capsize, the High Court usually orders the responsible persons to compensate the victims or victims’ families but the court orders have rarely been executed. Even in those cases when road accidents trigger nationwide protests, the promised or ordered compensations have not been met. In the years, the High Court had asked the government and bus owners to pay compensations to the families of the 15 victims of road accidents in Dhaka and Chattogram but only three to four victims so far have received compensations. The violation of court order is also a contempt to the court but the transport leaders are too powerful denying such orders.
Parents of Shaheed Ramij Uddin Cantonment College students Diya Khanam Mim and Abdul Karim Rajib, run over and killed by a speeding Jabal-e-Nur Paribahan bus on Airport Road at Kurmitola bus stop in Dhaka on July 29, 2018, got compensations from the bus owners. Green Line Paribahan gave a cheque of Tk 5 lakh (out of 50 lakh) to Russel Sarkar for smashing his leg at the Dolaipar end of Mayor Hanif Flyover in Dhaka on April 28, 2018. The families of the rest 12 accident victims are yet to get compensations.
Titumir College student Rajib Hossain died after his right forearm was severed between two running buses. Taking the accident into cognizance, the court ordered two bus companies to pay Tk 1 crore to Rajib’s family but the family is yet to get any compensation. Even, noted filmmaker Tareque Masud’s family has not got any compensation who died in a road accident in 2011. Families of 110 people killed in MV Nasrin launch capsize in the Meghna River near Chandpur on July 8, 2003, have not yet get compensation, which was ordered by the Dhaka Joint District Judge’s Court and also upheld by the High Court.
We must say the government is bound to execute the court order according to the Constitution. Time has changed and no powerful transport leader is now in the Cabinet to influence the political decision. We hope the court will follow up the development of compensation disbursement and compel the administration to execute the orders in favour of the victims.
