Sohel Rana (businessman)

Sohel Rana
Born Sohel Rana
Residence Savar, Dhaka
Nationality Bangladeshi
Parent(s) Abdul Khalek [1]

Sohel Rana (born ca. 1977) is the owner of Rana Plaza[1] which collapsed in Savar, a sub-district near Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. He is a Jubo League leader of Bangladesh Awami League.[2]

Career

Rana's father owned an oil mill to maintain the family. He owns large tracts of land. He was wealthy.[3]

Firoz Kabir, chairman of the Savar sub-district council, told the BBC that Sohel Rana is known as a gangster in the area."[4]

Rana Plaza collapse

Rana and his father built Rana Plaza in 2006, after they reportedly had bullied off co-owners and falsified deeds to acquire full possession. He obtained permits to expand the building to five floors from political allies.[5] On April 23, 2013, explosion-like sounds led people to bring in an engineer to inspect the building. After observing large cracks in supporting columns, the engineer fled the building and urged everyone to evacuate. Rana, who fielded local journalists on the bottom floor, told these reporters that the plaster on the wall was broken.[5] The next day, Rana and the factory owners urged workers to return to their jobs. When a generator on an upper floor switched on and shook the building, the building collapsed, killing 1129 people and wounding an estimated 2,500 others.[6]

Arrest and trial

Rapid Action Battalion members arrested Sohel Rana from Benapole in Jessore District on April 28, four days after the Savar tragedy.[7]

In March 2014 Rana was granted six months' bail in the High Court. This prompted angry reactions from labour leaders. However, Rana will not be released from jail as another case filed by police is pending.[8]

References

  1. 1 2 "Sohel Rana's father arrested in city". banglanews24.com. Retrieved 29 Apr 2013.
  2. ↑ "Sohel Rana: The man behind the Savar tragedy". bdinn. Retrieved May 2, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Sohel Rana: The true face of politics". The Daily Star. Retrieved May 6, 2013.
  4. ↑ Sabir Mustafa, Shyadul Islam. "Profile: Rana Plaza owner Mohammad Sohel Rana". BBC. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  5. 1 2 Jim Yardley, The Most Hated Bangladeshi, Toppled From a Shady Empire, New York Times, April 30, 2013
  6. ↑ Jim Yardley, Report on Bangladesh Building Collapse Finds Widespread Blame, New York Times, May 22, 2013
  7. ↑ "3 confess to aiding and abetting Sohel Rana". unb. Retrieved May 2, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Building Code Violation Case. Bail for Rana Plaza owner". The Daily Star. Dhaka. March 24, 2014. Retrieved 10 April 2014.


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