Bangladesh: HC wants to know government steps on e-commerce

File photo of the Bangladesh Supreme Court

Bangladesh desk: : The High Court has asked the government to inform it before November 8 about the steps taken so far regarding irregularities in the e-commerce sector, including money laundering.

The virtual bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Mustafizur Rahman gave the order on Tuesday.

The court sought written explanation from the authorities concerned on three issues – the policy of the National Board of Revenue regarding the collection of VAT and Tax from e-commerce firms, the terms of reference of the 16-member committee formed by the Commerce Ministry, and the steps taken by the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) of the central bank to bring back the laundered money from abroad.

The order came after a hearing on three similar writ petitions filed over the fraudulent activities by the e-commerce companies that surfaced in recent months.

Lawyers Md Anwarul Islam, Mohammad Shishir Monir and Humayun Kabir Pallab stood for the petitioners while Deputy Attorney General Bipul Bagmar represented the state.

The writs were filed seeking the formation of an investigation committee led by a retired judge to assess the losses incurred by hundreds of thousands of consumers.