Acting editor of banglamail24.com, two others secure bail

The editor of online news portal banglamail24.com and two other journalists have secured bail from a Dhaka court in a case started under the ICT Act.

Staff Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 14 August 2016, 11:59 AM
Updated : 14 August 2016, 12:02 PM

Acting Editor Shahadat Ulla Khan, Executive Editor Maksudul Alam and Staff Reporter Pranta Palash stand accused of spreading rumours.

Defence counsel Priyalal Saha said the Cyber Tribunal granted bail for the trio on Sunday.

The online portal ran a story last week on a report published by another portal named ‘Todaynews71’, which said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s son Sajeeb Wazed Joy had died in a plane crash.

The banglamail report had also clarified the same day that the ‘Todaynews71’ story was a rumour.

The same night Rapid Action Battalion raided the Kakrail offices of banglamail and picked up Khan, Alam and Palash.

The elite police unit initiated the case under the ICT Act against the three and the Dhaka-based online newspaper’s founding chairman Md Fazlul.

The press accreditations for its reporters were cancelled the day the arrests were made and the website was found inaccessible.

Its chairman Azim was elected an independent MP during the 2008-2013 term after leaving the BNP.

He has also served as a vice-president for the top trade body for apparel businesses, Bangladesh Garments Manufacturer and Exporters Association (BGMEA).

Last week, the three were produced before the court, when police’s plea to remand them was turned down.

Their lawyers had pleaded for bails, but the court had then sent them to jail.