Status quo on Nagad admin’s activities until final verdict: HC

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Update Time : Thursday, January 16, 2025
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Shawdesh Desk:

The High Court has extended the status quo on Nagad’s administrator until the final order is made, thus preventing Bangladesh Bank-appointed administrator and management board from taking any fresh action beyond regular business operations.The order was issued on Wednesday (Jan 15) by a bench of Justice Farah Mahbub and Justice Debasish Roy Chowdhury, which also stated that a final verdict on the matter will come by January 30, 2025.

Earlier on December 18, 2024, the High Court imposed a two-week status quo on all activities of the administrator appointed in Nagad.

When contacted, Assistant Attorney General Muzahedul Islam Shahin has said a writ petition concerning Bangladesh Bank and Nagad is currently under judicial consideration, and a status quo order is in place regarding Nagad.

Barrister Muhammad Nawaz Jamir, representing Nagad, said, “The Honorable High Court has issued an order maintaining status quo on administrative activities concerning Nagad. This restricts any new decisions from being implemented until the final judgment is rendered. The court also observed that Bangladesh Bank has engaged in several illegal actions. Once the final judgment is delivered, these actions will be reversed, and appropriate legal measures will be taken.”

Led by Barrister Muhammad Jamiruddin Sircar, some other senior lawyer Advocate Md Abul Kalam Khan (Daud), Advocate Md Ziaur Rahman and Advocate Md Jamilur Rahman represented Nagad during the hearing.

The legal dispute began in September soon after the Bangladesh Bank appointed Muhammad Badiuzzaman Dider as Nagad’s administrator on August 21, 2024.

The banking regulator also dissolved Nagad’s previous board and reconstituted it with the beneficiary group of the competitor company.

The Bangladesh Bank did all these things in Nagad under the Payment and Settlement System Act 2024, although that act was not gazetted till that time.

Challenging all these activities, Md Shafayet Alam, an executive director of Nagad, filed the writ petition with the High Court. After the hearing, the High Court also issued a rule nisi, questioning the legality of the administrator’s appointment.

Meanwhile, the High Court on Wednesday extended the status quo on all internal affairs of Nagad’s administrator.