Arrest warrant issued for Gonoshasthaya Kendra founder Zafrullah Chowdhury

A war crimes tribunal has issued arrest warrant for Gonoshasthaya Kendra founder Zafrullah Chowdhury for not paying the fines slapped on him for contempt of court.

The three-member International Crimes Tribunal-2, led by Justice Obaidul Hassan, issued the warrant on Thursday, a week after Chowdhury had been fined.

He stood in the dock for an hour as punishment for the contempt on June 10 but later said he would not pay the fines.

On Tuesday, the chamber judge stayed the penalty until July 5 after a preliminary hearing on a petition filed by Chowdhury under Article 104 of the Constitution.

A regular bench will hear the petition on July 5.

ICT-2 Acting Deputy Registrar Md Aftabuzzaman said the stay order was yet to reach the tribunal.  

"The petitioner also did not inform (the tribunal) about the matter (either)," he added.

Chowdhury was found guilty of contempt of court for his statement expressing concern over British journalist David Bergman's conviction.

The tribunal ordered him to stand in the dock for an hour and fined Tk 5,000.

It also said he would have to spend a month in jail if he did not pay the fines.