The next hearing is scheduled for November 23. The High Court expressed its displeasure on Tuesday after the authorities in question failed to submit reports on the efforts taken to combat money laundering by e-commerce companies and the policy for collecting tax and VAT from them on time.

During a hearing on three writ petitions filed by victims of e-commerce fraud, the HC bench comprising Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Md Mostafizur Rahman expressed their displeasure. The bench stated that the court will treat the complaint seriously because the government bodies involved had not responded to the High Court's notice.

The court ordered Deputy Attorney General Bipul Bagmar to notify the Attorney General. It then scheduled the next hearing for November 23 and delayed the deadline for submitting reports until then.

On September 30, the court ordered the Ministry of Commerce, the National Board of Revenue (NBR), and the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) to produce separate reports on e-commerce platform money laundering by November 8. The court requested that the BFIU tell it of the efforts taken against money laundering by e-commerce firms, as well as NBR's stance on collecting VAT and tax from these businesses.

The court also enquired about the operation of the 16-member technical committee for the e-commerce sector established by the Commerce Ministry.

The petitioners were represented by lawyers Mohammad Shishir Monir, Md Anwarul Islam, and Pallob Kabir M Humaun, while the state was represented by Deputy Attorney General Bipul Bagmar.

Anwarul Islam, a Supreme Court lawyer, had filed a writ case on September 20 seeking a directive from the court to establish an impartial e-commerce monitoring institute to defend the interests and rights of e-commerce customers.On September 22, SC lawyer Mohammad Humayun Kabir filed a petition asking the court to order the formation of a probe committee to identify the responsible individual or government authority whose negligence or failure has resulted in monetary losses for lakhs of consumers from well-known e-commerce sites such as Evaly, e-orange, Dhamaka, Daraz, Qcoom, Aladiner Prodip, Alesha Mart, and Dalal Plus.

Thirty-three e-orange customers filed a writ on September 23 to seek their money back from the corporation. Advocate Shishir Monir filed the petition, which calls for a travel ban on senior officials and authorities of risky e-commerce enterprises like e-orange, as well as the formation of a commission to protect the interests of both customers and businesses, led by economists, IT specialists, and stakeholders.