Industrial Killing in Bangladesh: State Policies, Common-law Nexus, and International Obligations

The legal system of Bangladesh does not directly acknowledge industrial killing in the form of penal offenses and thus is not equipped with a solid legal avenue to ensure justice for the victims. This article attempts to discuss industrial killing in Bangladesh through four particular incidents, the current domestic framework for preventing industrial killings, and common law countries’ legislations as best practices. Also, it reminds the state obligation under the provisions of international law. This qualitative study uses applied techniques from the professional constituency that deal with law reform research (socio-legal research/ “law in context”) from a labor rights lens. This study finds that recurring events of industrial killings come with a manifold threat to labor rights. The most immediate risk it poses is that it clashes with the workers’ right to life. Therefore, the recommendation is highly focused on the obligation under international law. It also focuses on legislative changes in punishing the offenders involved in industrial killings as part of its progressive realization of the duty to respect, protect and fulfill human rights obligations.