Rana, factory owners barred from going abroad

The government has barred the owners of the collapsed nine-storey commercial building Rana Plaza in Savar and the five readymade garment factories housed in the huge structure from leaving the country.

Staff Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 26 April 2013, 01:41 PM
Updated : 26 April 2013, 01:41 PM

Home Minister Muhiuddin Khan Alamgir on Friday said the government taken all measures to ensure that ill-constructed building owner Sohel Rana and the RMG unit owners did not flee the country.

He said the government had issued an alert at various places including airports and land ports by sending a list of those responsible for the country's worst-ever building collapse to bar them from going abroad.

The minister gave this information after a meeting with the leaders of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers’ and Exporters’ Association (BGMEA) and the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers’ and Exporters’ Association (BKMEA).

Local Government Minister Syed Ashraful Islam, Industries Minister Dilip Barua and State Minister for Labour Monnujan Sufian were present at the meeting.

The death toll climbed to 304 as rescuers continued to look for the last survivors under tons of debris two days after the huge structure, which had developed cracks on Tuesday, collapsed in the suburban township of Savar at around 8:30am on Wednesday.
Most of the victims were garment workers, as the building housed five readymade garment factories alongside 300 shops with nearly 6,000 workers employed there.
Rescuers have pulled out nearly 2,350 people alive from the rubbles so far, but fear that the number of deaths could go up as many people were trapped under the debris for over 60 hours.
Many survivors alleged that the owners of their garment factories forced them to go back to work on Wednesday morning despite noticing the crack there the previous day.
Rana, a Senior Joint Convenor of the Awami League’s youth front Juba League’s Savar municipality unit, has been on the run since the collapse.
Of the five garment factories, Mahbubur Rahman and Bazlul Samad Adnan are the owners of New Wave Bottoms and New Wave Style, respectively, Aminul Islam owns Phantom Appeals and Track, while Anisur Rahman is the owner of Eithertex.
Police and RAJUK filed two lawsuits at the Savar Police Station on Wednesday night accusing Rana and the owners of the five garment units for the loss of lives and damages.
Meanwhile, the High Court on Thursday ordered the Officer in-Charge of the Saver Police Station to ensure personal appearance of Sohel Rana and the Chairmen and Managing Directors of all garment factories housed in the building on Apr 30 before the court.