It is unacceptable that the victims of the country’s most devastating launch capsize are still awaiting fair compensation even after 23 years. Reportedly, a compensation case was filed by Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST) on behalf of the victims in 2004 and finally won in 2017. But the execution case is still awaiting a decree, with a petition against the 2017 verdict remaining pending before the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court to this day.
The lethargy and disregard for ordinary lives as shown through this protracted development have been evident throughout the MV Nasrin-1 saga. A report published in The Daily Star noted that the triple-deck launch, licensed to carry 300 passengers, sank with more than 700 people on board in the Meghna River near Chandpur on July 8, 2003. A government probe later blamed faulty design, overloading, and the skipper’s inadequate skills. While media reports at the time suggested around 600 people were missing, no official death toll was published. The then Chandpur deputy commissioner listed 400 affected individuals, and the shipping and disaster trustee boards initially disbursed Tk 15,000-20,000 to families of the injured and deceased.
The 2004 BLAST case sought over Tk 28.93 crore in compensation for 171 deceased, which was the total number of bodies recovered from the Meghna River after four days. A verdict came 12 years later, in February 2016, when a Dhaka court ordered the government to pay Tk 17.11 crore to the families of 170 deceased and one injured within 60 days.
However, the victims did not receive compensation within that timeframe. Instead, eight months later, in October 2016, the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) and the launch owners’ association filed a revision petition in the High Court, which in 2017 upheld the lower court’s verdict. They then filed a leave-to-appeal petition with the Appellate Division in 2019, seeking a stay. In 2020, the matter was sent to a full bench, where it remains pending.
The MV Nasrin-1 case shows how Bangladesh’s protracted legal process continues to deny people not only justice but even the basic right to fair compensation. Although laws change on paper, victims rarely receive justice in practice. Too often, individuals and institutions responsible evade accountability—both financial and punitive—through prolonged legal battles. This is not unique to the MV Nasrin-1 case; the same pattern has been visible in many other transport-related fatalities. We, therefore, urge the authorities to resolve the MV Nasrin-1 case without delay and to ensure that such cases are expedited so that victims can at least receive compensation in time.
