Provide Tk 5 lakh each to families of Airport Road crash victims: HC

The High Court on Monday directed the owners of ‘Jabal-e-Noor Paribahan’ to provide Tk 5 lakh within a week to each family of the two students who were killed in a road crash at Airport Road in the capital on Sunday.

The court also ordered the bus owners to bear all the costs of treatment of the nine students injured in the accident.

The Chairman of the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) was directed to make sure that the HC order is executed.

A bench of Justice JBM Hassan and Justice Md Khairul Alam passed the order after hearing a writ petition filed by Barrister Ruhul Kuddus Kajal in the form of public interest litigation.

The court also issued a rule seeking explanation as to why directives should not be given to provide Tk 2 crore to each family as compensation and ensure people’s safety in public transports through strictly implementing the traffic rules.

Secretaries to Home, and Road Transport and Bridges ministries, Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dhaka Metropolitan Police Commissioner, its Additional Commissioner (Traffic), Bangladesh Road Transport Authority and Jabal-e-Noor Paribahan authorities were asked to respond to the rule.

Besides, the BRTA chairman was asked to submit a report within August 12 on what steps they have taken to ensure security of commuters on roads and on the basis of what drivers of public transports are given driving licences.

Earlier on Sunday, two students of Shaheed Ramiz Uddin School and College — Diya Khanam Mim and Abdul Karim Rajib — were killed as a Kabal-e-Noor Paribahan bus ploughed through some students in front of Kurmitola General Hospital at Airport Road.

A case was filed on Sunday night over the incident and members of Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) arrested two drivers and two helpers of three buses from different parts of the capital on Monday.