Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Anisul Huq on Thursday (February 01, 2024) said the government is not harassing Noble Laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus by filing false cases. “The government is not doing anything to harass Dr Muhammad Yunus. No false case is being filed against him. First a case was filed by workers and then the directorate responsible for protecting the rights of the workers filed a case.” He said this at a press conference on contemporary issues at the secretariat today. Read: 3 awarded life terms for 2015 murder in Cumilla  “Despite undisputable evidence, it is being spread abroad that the allegations against him (Yunus) are false, and it is being said that we are doing this to harass him,” said the minister. The minister said that the efforts being made at home and abroad to defame various institutions in Bangladesh centring on Yunus's case will be defeated. "As you know, according to the provisions of the Bangladesh Labour Act, an inspector can inspect any company if it is found that they are violating the law. In this case, on February 2, 2020, the inspector of the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) first inspected Grameen Telecom as per the provisions of the Labour Act,” said Anisul. "He found out that some laws were being violated. Later, on March 1, he wrote a letter to Grameen Telecom seeking their explanation about these violations and asking them to correct those,” he said. Read: Take measures in preventing price hike of daily essentials: IGP  “Grameen Telecom's response was not satisfactory, and they (DIFE) inspected Grameen Telecom again on August 17, 2021. After seeing violations of the same law there, a letter was sent on August 19 stating that the law was being violated. In such a situation, a case was filed against Dr Yunus and Grameen Telecom on September 9,” added Anisul.

Ambassador of the European Union (EU) to Bangladesh Charles Whiteley on Wednesday said aligning labour law with international standards will be an “essential element” for the European Parliament and the Commission in considering Bangladesh’s application for market access, the GSP+. “Bangladesh has the option to accede to GSP+ which is the next most generous GSP programme after the Everything but Arms (EBA),” he said while speaking at a seminar in Dhaka. Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi attended the seminar as the chief guest while President of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) Md Sameer Sattar delivered welcome remarks. Executive Chairman of the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) Lokman Hossain Miah, among others, spoke at the seminar. The DCCI and European Union Delegation to Bangladesh jointly hosted the seminar, titled “Unlocking Trade and Investment for European Companies in Bangladesh.” Read: EU urged to extend transition period of GSP up to 6 years for smooth graduation of Bangladesh The EU ambassador said the implementation of the National Action Plan on the labour sector, which Bangladesh agreed with the EU, will be key deciding factor for GSP+. “We are closely following the ongoing amendments of the Bangladesh Labour Act. We hope that the amendments will be effective with full transparency, in consultation with tripartite stakeholders, and with technical assistance from ILO,” he said. The envoy said Bangladesh is a rising economy with a great story of economic development and social progress. The graduation to a lower middle-income and to a developing country status are historic milestones which bring new opportunities and which call for a reinvigoration of EU-Bangladesh ties, he said.