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Banshkhali power plant killing

Compensation paid to families of victims


Published : 25 Jul 2021 09:37 PM | Updated : 26 Jul 2021 08:38 AM

The S Alam Group has paid a total of Tk 35 lakh as compensation to the families of seven people who were shot dead at a coal-based power plant at Banshkhali in Chattogram on April 17 this year.

 Tk five lakh were paid each to families of seven slain workers at the SS Power I Plant, a coal-based power plant of the S Alam Group.

A report on the payment of the compensation was submitted to the High Court bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim. Lawyer of S Alam Group Mohammad Arshadur Rahman submitted the report on behalf of the S Alam Group.  

Some lawyers related to the writ petitions on the incident confirmed the matter to the media.

However, the prosecution has prayed for time to submit the report of the two investigation committees, formed under the leadership of Deputy Commissioner (DC) and Superintendent of Police (SP), to the court.

Deputy Attorney General Bipul Bagmar on Sunday (July 25) said that the court had given 45 days to submit the reports of the two inquiry committees. “We sought more time,” he said.

 On May 4, the High Court ordered the authorities concerned to pay compensation of Tk five lakh each to families of seven slain workers who were killed at the coal-based power plant at Banshkhali. The HC bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Sardar Md Rashed Jahangir had issued the order after holding hearing on two writ petitions simultaneously.

 The HC bench, however, issued a rule over judicial enquiry and asked the police and the local administration of Chattogram to submit their probe reports on the protection and safety system of the plant’s workers within 45 days.

 Seven young workers of the under-construction SS Power I Plant were shot dead and several others were injured during a clash between police and workers. Some of the deceased are Rony Hossain, 22, Ahmed Reza, 19, Shuvho, 23, Mohammad Rahat, 24, and Mohammad Raihan, 20.  

 Two cases were filed against over 2,500 unnamed people in connection with the incident. On the other hand, the government had announced to compensate Tk 2 lakh to the families of each victim who lost their lives in the clash.

 After the incident, six rights-based organisations Ain O Salish Kendra (ASK), Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA), Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST), Nijera Kori (NK), Safety and Rights Society, and Association for Land Reform and Development (ALRD) filed the two separate writ petitions with the High Court