DHAKA: As government authorities signaled off mobile-court operation, the High Court order resuming the drive and catching offenders under the stringent Special Powers Act for food faking and jacking up prices.

The inspector-general of police (IGP) was directly directed to ensure the filing of criminal cases under the Special Powers Act against those traders who sell adulterated foodstuffs and increase prices of food items ”arbitrarily”.

In a double-pronged directive the High Court also asked the secretaries of the commerce, industries, and health ministries to carry on the mobile-court drives for market cleansing over the next two months.

An HC bench comprising Justice AHM Samsuddin Chowdhury and Justice Sheikh Jakir Hossain issued the orders upon a writ petition seeking the court’s directives for continuing the drive, which came to a halt just a day after the start with a big bang, reportedly following a difference of opinion between two ministers.          

In a further step, the court issued rule upon the government to explain within three weeks why it “should not be directed to take effective steps to prevent food adulteration and illegal increase of food prices”.

The court orders came in response to the petition filed by Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh (HRPB) Monday.

The court also directed the inspector-general of police (IGP), director-general of the Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) and the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) commissioner to provide “sufficient forces” to back up the mobile courts as per their requirement.

Court sources told banglanews24.com.bd that Advocate Monzil Morshed on behalf of HRPB filed the writ petition seeking order for carrying on the anti-adulteration drive through mobile court.

BDST 1651 HRS AUGUST 16, 2010