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The High Court on Sunday summarily rejected a writ petition that was filed challenging the legality of holding the post of managing director (MD) of the Khulna Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (Khulna WASA) by Md Abdullah.
The High Court bench of Justice Md Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice Khizir Hayat passed the order after primary hearing on the petition.
Emdadul Hoque Bosir, a Supreme Court lawyer, filed the writ petition on March 21 this year as a public interest litigation.
The petitioner himself defended his petition in the court hearing, while Barrister Sayed Mahsib Hossain represented the Khulna WASA MD.
Advocate Emdadul Hoque said, “The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) had earlier conducted an inquiry into the appointment process of Khulna WASA MD Engineer Md Abdullah and corruption allegations against him. Later the ACC submitted a report to the High Court saying that it didn't find any truth of those allegations. That is why the HC dismissed the writ petition.”
Barrister Sayed Mahsib Hossain said, “The MD has above 20 years of experience and has served in Titas and other government agencies. Moreover, he was called by the ACC twice but till this date the ACC couldn’t find any mark of corruption in his career.”
Lawyer Emdadul Hoque prayed to the court to issue a rule upon the respondents asking them as to why the appointment of Md Abdullah as Managing Director of the Khulna WASA in 2009 and further appointments in violation of the terms and conditions of the appointment notification should not be declared illegal.
He also prayed to the court to issue a rule asking the respondents to explain as to why they should not be directed to hold an enquiry into the irregularities in the appointment of Md Abdullah in the post of managing director of the Khulna WASA.
The petitioner also prayed to the court to direct the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to hold an enquiry into the irregularities in the appointment of Md Abdullah in the post of Managing Director of the Khulna WASA.
Local Government Secretary, Public Administration Secretary, Deputy Secretary (water supply wing) of the Local Government Ministry, Chairman of the Bangladesh Public Service Commission, Khulna WASA, Chairman of Khulna WASA, ACC Chairman and Khulna WASA MD were made respondents in the petition.
The writ petition said Md Abdullah has been functioning as the managing director of the Khulna WASA for last 13 years, since 2009. Though he was initially appointed on a contractual basis for a period of three years, he was given fresh appointment four times in the same post after the lapse of each tenure.
The terms and conditions the recruitment notifications were set each time in a way to benefit the incumbent MD. In the recruitment notification published in 2009, the maximum age of the candidates for the post of MD was set to be 58 years, but in the notification published in 2018 the maximum age limit was set as 60 years.