Legal notice to govt to scrap Sections 57, 86 of ICT Act

A Supreme Court lawyer has sent a legal notice to the government seeking repeal of Sections 57 and 86 of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Act.

Lawyer Younus Ali Akhand sent the notice by post to the secretaries to Cabinet Division and the ministries of law and information on Wednesday.

It said that a writ petition would be filed in the High Court if measures to scrap the ICT Act sections were not initiated within 24 hours.

The ICT Act was passed in 2006 before being amended twice in 2009 and 2013.

In the last amendment, offences under the Section 57 were made non-bailable and the maximum penalty was extended to 14-year imprisonment.

Section 57 of the law criminalises ‘publishing fake, obscene or defaming information in electronic form.’

Offence under this provision of the ICT Act is punishable by at least seven years in prison and 14 years imprisonment at the most.

Fine can be as high as Tk 10 million.

Section 86 provides indemnity to public servants involved in implementing this Act.

Journalist Probir Sikdar was arrested and remanded in a case lodged under the ICT Act on charges of defaming the LGRD and cooperatives minister through a Facebook post.

Sikdar was released a day after he was remanded in police custody for three days, but rights activists again started demanding revoking of the Section 57 of the Act.

Sikdar is the publisher and Editor of Uttaradhikar Ekattur News and Dainik Bangla Ekattur.

Rights groups have been vocal against these legal provisions, saying this effectively muzzles the freedom of speech and expression.

The forum of print media editors, the Editors’ Council, has also demanded scrapping of Section 57.

In his legal notice, Akhand said the ICT Act’s Sections 57 and 86 contradict Articles 7, 27, 39 and 40 of the Constitution.

Article 27 ensures ‘equal rights’ for all citizens while Article 39 guarantees freedom of ‘thought and conscience’ as well as freedom of speech and press.

Article 40 stipulates the ‘right to enter upon any lawful profession or occupation, and to conduct any lawful trade or business’, and Article 7 says ‘All powers in the Republic belong to the people’.