The telecom watchdog clarified its legal authorities in a media statement, two days after the blog refused to provide it with information it had earlier sought.
BTRC on Thursday sent a letter to amarblog.com asking for information about six of its bloggers. But amarblog.com refused to do so and talked about providing those bloggers with legal assistance.
”As per Bangladesh Telecommunication Control Act, BTRC can ask for information from anyone having telecommunication license or any Internet user to ensure proper usage of information technology,” BTRC said in the statement.
It also said according to law, not providing it with the sought information was a punishable crime.
The government has already formed a committee in wake of the recent allegations against some blogs and Facebook pages that they were hurting people’s religious feeling misusing social networking sites. The committee will recommend taking actions against those involved in such acts.
On Feb 20, BTRC closed 12 blogs and Facebook pages including ‘Sonar Bangla’ and ‘Basher Kella’ reportedly run by people tied to Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing over last few days.