High Court orders 7th-grade pay for 690 lecturers of nationalized colleges

The High Court of Bangladesh has mandated that 690 lecturers from various nationalized colleges receive salaries commensurate with the 7th grade. This directive follows a writ petition filed by the lecturers who argued they were unfairly demoted in pay grade following the nationalization of their institutions.

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The petitioners said that they had been receiving salaries under the 7th-grade scale before their colleges were nationalised.

Previously, these educators were compensated under the 7th-grade scale. However, after their colleges became nationalized, they were reassigned to the 9th grade. This change resulted in a loss of their prior salary structure and associated service benefits, prompting their legal challenge.

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But following nationalisation, they were placed in the 9th grade, depriving them of their previous pay scale and service benefits.

The bench, comprising Justice KM Hafizul Alam and Justice Murad-A-Mowla Sohel, delivered the verdict after a thorough final hearing. The lecturers' legal team, including Advocate Mohammad Siddique Ullah Miah, highlighted that a similar judgment was passed on July 11, 2024, in favor of 45 other lecturers. The state was represented by Deputy Attorney General Md JR Khan Robin.

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a similar judgment had earlier been delivered in favour of 45 lecturers on July 11, 2024.