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Published : 20 Aug 2015, 01:40 AM
The Dhaka Union of Journalists (DUJ) General Secretary Kuddus Afrad and the Prime Minister's Media Adviser Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury say they believe Sikdar got bail due to the minister's intervention.
Afrad told bdnews24.com they went to the minister's office on Wednesday afternoon to thank him.
Police arrested journalist Sikdar on Sunday night in a case over 'defaming' the minister, filed by one of Hossain's followers.
"Prime Minister's Media Adviser Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury met the LGRD minister on Wednesday morning and requested him to help Sikdar to get bail.”
"The minister called the plaintiff and directed him not to oppose Sikdar's bail plea," he told bdnews24.com.
A Faridpur court granted Sikdar bail, a day after he was sent to a three-day police remand.
He was released from prison in the afternoon after the court documents reached the jail authorities.
Chowdhury told bdnews24.com he had met Minister Hossain in the morning and sought his assistance.
"Probir's wife called the minister and requested him to see to it that her husband is released on bail," he claimed.
But Sikdar's wife Anita Sikdar told bdnews24.com she was at the Faridpur court premises around noon.
"Faridpur Sadar Police Station OC gave me his mobile phone to talk to someone. The person on the other end called me 'Bou Ma' (daughter-in-law) and said, 'I'm trying for Probir's bail'.
"I thanked him," she said, adding she was not told who the person was.
Chowdhury said the journalist leaders had met Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal after Sikdar got bail and requested him to take steps for his swift release.
"The minister spoke with relevant authorities and Probir was released after that," he said.
BFUJ President Monjurul Ahsan Bulbul, General Secretary Abdul Jalil Bhuiyan and DUJ President Altaf Mahmud, among others, went to meet the home and LGRD ministers.
"We later met the LGRD minister in the afternoon and thanked him for assisting in the bail process," Chowdhury added.
The BFUJ and DUJ had condemned Sikdar's arrest in a joint statement on Tuesday.
DUJ General Secretary Afrad said they asked the minister as to why Sikdar was handcuffed.
They were assured that legal steps would be taken against policemen if they violated the law in doing so.
"The LGRD minister told us, 'I don't have any enmity with Probir Sikdar. They are a respected family. A vested quarter is trying to make an issue out of it," he added.
