The collapse
Rana Plaza housed several garment factories near the Savar bus stand. On April 24, 2013, the multi-storey building collapsed while thousands of people were inside. Later anniversary reporting based on court and rescue records counted 1,136 deaths, 2,438 people rescued alive and nearly 2,000 people left injured or disabled.
The disaster became a defining global case about worker safety and supply-chain responsibility. This page focuses specifically on the Bangladeshi criminal proceedings rather than attempting to assign criminal responsibility to every company or institution connected to the building.
The murder case
Police filed a murder case after the collapse. The Criminal Investigation Department later pressed charges against building owner Sohel Rana and 41 other people. In July 2016, a Dhaka court framed charges against 41 accused and the case moved into trial.
The allegation that the defendants bear criminal responsibility remains just that until adjudicated. The existence of a murder charge is not a conviction, and this archive does not describe Sohel Rana or any co-defendant as a murderer based solely on the indictment.
A trial that kept stalling
The Supreme Court repeatedly confronted delays. In January 2024, the Appellate Division ordered the lower court to complete the murder trial within six months and kept Rana's bail suspended. The deadline did not produce a final judgment.
By April 24, 2026 — thirteen years after the collapse — The Daily Star and bdnews24 reported that only 145 of the 594 listed prosecution witnesses had testified. The court had issued non-bailable warrants against dozens of witnesses in an effort to move the case forward.
Separate proceedings should not be conflated
Rana Plaza generated multiple legal cases, including proceedings under building-construction law and anti-corruption law. Outcomes in those matters do not automatically decide the murder prosecution. The murder trial concerns a distinct set of charges and defendants and remained unfinished in the latest reliable reporting located for this update.
Why the case is classified as unresolved
The deaths and the physical disaster are not in dispute, and the prosecution has long identified defendants. But the central murder trial has not produced a final judgment establishing guilt or innocence for the accused. That makes the correct status Unresolved / Active Criminal Trial, not solved.
Timeline
April 24, 2013: Rana Plaza collapses in Savar, killing 1,136 people in the later official and court record.
April 29, 2013: Sohel Rana is arrested after the disaster.
May 24, 2015: CID presses charges against Rana and 41 others in the murder case.
July 18, 2016: charges are framed against 41 accused and the murder trial begins.
January 15, 2024: the Appellate Division orders completion of the trial within six months and keeps Rana's bail suspended.
April 24, 2026: 145 of 594 listed witnesses have testified; the trial remains unfinished.
Current status
The Rana Plaza murder case remains unresolved. No final judgment in the principal murder trial was located for this update. The page should be revised if a trial verdict, appellate ruling or other dispositive judgment is issued.