Dhaka, Feb 4 (bdnew24.com) - The High Court on Monday ruled the detention of Prothom Alo cartoonist Arifur Rahman illegal, ordering the government to release Arif immediately if no case is pending against him.
Arif's lawyer Sara Hossain told bdnews24.com: "Arifur Rahman will not be released yet as there is a criminal case against him."
The bench of justices Mirza Hossein Haider and Mamnun Rahman gave the ruling on a writ petition filed by Arif's cousin Jewel Ahmed.
The young cartoonist was arrested and detained last year on charges of "hurting religious sentiment", for drawing a cartoon that appeared in a magazine of Bangla language newspaper Prothom Alo.
The cartoon was published in the weekly satire magazine Alpin on Sept 17, 2007. Detective branch police arrested Arif the following day.
Former Tejgaon police chief Jane Alam filed the case against Arif with the CMM Court for Dhaka on Sept 20.
The writ petition challenging the detention was filed with the High Court on Arif's behalf in December last year.
In the final hearing on the writ petition Monday, barrister Sara Hossain said: "Arifur Rahman has been detained on charges of hurting the religious sentiment of the Muslim community. But no one can be detained on this charge."
"Besides, there is a legal rule of informing the detained person of the reason for detention within 15 days. Arif was informed of the reason after 15 days."
"For these reasons his detention order is illegal," barrister Hossain argued.
Deputy attorney general Mubina Asaf represented the government in the hearing of the writ petition.
Meanwhile, a Dhaka trial court is expected to give a verdict on Feb 25 in the case against Arif.
The court set the verdict date on Jan 29, after hearing an appeal by barrister Hossain, arguing that Arif had simply submitted the cartoon in question to his employers.
He did not have the authority to decide whether it would be published, she had told the trial court.
He did not draw the cartoon with the intention of hurting anybody's religious sentiment, and he expresses his sorrow if anybody was hurt unintentionally, she had said on behalf of her client.
Arifur Rahman has been detained in jail since his arrest.
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