In a swift reversal, a US court on Friday suspended arrest warrants for Bangladesh’s Finance Adviser, Salehuddin Ahmed, and Bangladesh Bank Governor, Ahsan H Mansur.
The warrants, issued just a day earlier, were based on an appeal by Smith Cogeneration (Bangladesh) seeking to enforce a $31.9 million penalty against the Bangladesh government.
On Thursday, US District Judge Carl J Nichols instructed the US Marshals Service to ensure Ahmed and Mansur appeared in court to provide statements. However, by Friday, the court temporarily stayed the warrants.
Bangladesh’s Senior Foreign Secretary, Mushfiqul Fazal Ansarey, shared the update on his Facebook account, explaining that Smith Cogeneration’s lawsuit stems from a 1997 power purchase agreement terminated by the Awami League government in 1999.
The agreement permitted Smith Cogeneration to construct a barge-mounted power plant in northern Bangladesh.
Nearly 25 years later, the Washington DC Circuit Court ruled on the prolonged dispute. However, citing jurisdictional concerns, the court suspended the decision on Friday. Ansarey noted that Bangladesh’s interim government—formed after a period of unrest—cannot be held accountable for previous regime actions and called for an investigation into those who may have withheld relevant case information from the current administration.
The US-based outlet Law360 initially reported on the warrants, underscoring the ongoing legal and diplomatic challenges for Bangladesh’s financial leadership.
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