The Appellate Division on Sunday extended the stay order on the proceedings of a High Court verdict until February 06, which declared the appointment of an administrator to operate Delta Life Insurance Company as illegal.
A five-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Justice Md Nuruzzaman passed the order after hearing a petition filed by the Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA) challenging the High Court’s verdict.
There will be no bar on Md Quddus Khan, former secretary, operating Delta Life Insurance as the administrator following the stay order granted by the apex court, said additional attorney general Sk Md Morshed.
The High Court on January 6 delivered the verdict declaring illegal a government’s decision on appointing the administrator to Delta Life Insurance in February in 2021. The High Court in the verdict reinstated the previous board of directors.
The verdict was given after hearing a writ petition filed by Delta Life and its share-holders challenging the decision of appointing an administrator by IDRA on allegations that Delta Life had evaded taxes and had not settled claims of policyholders.
But the chamber bench of the Appellate Division on January 10 this year stayed the proceedings of the verdict and set January 16 for further hearing by the full bench of the Appellate Division. After hearing, the apex court on January 16 upheld the stay order till January 23 and asked the IDRA to file a regular appeal petition against the verdict in the meantime.
Accordingly, the petition came to the cause-list of the Appellate Division and the apex court extended the stay order till February 6.
Lawyer Mustafizur Rahman Khan who appeared in the hearing on behalf of the Delta Life said, “The IDRA could not file the regular appeal petition as the full verdict of the High Court has not been released yet. That is why the apex court adjourned the hearing till Feb 6.”
On February 11, 2021, the IDRA suspended Delta Life’s board by citing irregularities and appointed Md Quddus Khan as the administrator for four months.
The ousted entrepreneurs went to the HC against the regulatory action. They also filed an anti-corruption case against IDRA Chairman Dr M Mosharraf Hossain charging him with demanding bribes. Later, the IDRA changed administrators in the company twice.
Supreme Court lawyers Mustafizur Rahman Khan and Karishma Jahan appeared before the Appellate Division bench for Delta Life and its shareholders, while additional attorney general Sk Md Morshed represented the state.
