Mahbub & Company successfully argues for the applicability of the Bangladesh Labour Act, 2006 to the National Sports Council in a pivotal hearing before the Appellate Division challenging a High Court Division judgment.
In a significant legal development concerning the scope of labor rights within government controlled statutory bodies, the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh has granted leave to appeal to determine whether the Bangladesh Labour Act, 2006 applies to the employees of the National Sports Council (Jatio Krira Parishad). The decision follows a hearing on Civil Petitions for Leave to Appeal (Nos. 39, 40, and 41 of 2018), which contested a 2017 High Court Division judgment that had discharged rules regarding the employees’ right to seek relief from the labour court under the Labour Act.
The case arose from the dismissal of several employees, mainly CBA leaders, by the National Sports Council (NSC) following allegations of unauthorized absence and other disciplinary issues. The petitioners initially secured a favorable judgment from the Second Labour Court, Dhaka, which set aside their dismissal orders and directed the NSC to reinstate them with all back wages. However, this was subsequently overturned by the Labour Appellate Tribunal and the High Court Division, primarily on the grounds of maintainability under the Act.
During the leave hearing, the legal team from Mahbub & Company’s Saqeb Mahbub, Partner focused on the maintainability of the suits under Section 1(4)(g) of the Labor Act, 2006. M&C argued that the High Court Division erred in holding the Council to be outside the purview of the Act.
Central to the argument was the assertion that the National Sports Council is not a purely philanthropic or educational institution but rather an entity engaged in significant commercial and financial activities. These activities include: the sale of stadium tickets and parking fees, leasing of swimming pools and commercial shops, renting spaces within the 20-storied NSC building, the publication and marketing of magazines.
The Appellate Division expressed concern regarding the maintainability of the Labor Act in this context and was primarily satisfied by the arguments presented regarding the NSC’s financial operations. Relying on established precedents, such as the Palli Daridra Bimochon Foundation case, the petitioners argued that organizations carrying out commercial operations—regardless of an overall profit motive—fall under the jurisdiction of labor law.
Consequently, the Hon’ble Appellate Division granted leave to appeal, formally questioning why the Labor Law, 2006, should not be applicable to the National Sports Council. This move paves the way for a definitive ruling on the labor rights of thousands of employees within similar statutory organizations in Bangladesh.
The petitioners’ legal team at Mahbub & Company was led by Saqeb Mahbub, Partner, who was assisted in the matter by M Parvez Rana, Associate.
