Prothom Alo editor gets six weeks’ anticipatory bail

The case was filed with Ramna Police Station on March 29.

An HC bench of Justice Mostafa Zaman Islam and Justice Md Aminul Islam granted him the bail following a plea filed by Advocate Prashanta Kumar Karmakar, a counsel for Matiur Rahman, on Sunday morning.

On March 29, an FIR was filed by lawyer Abdul Malek (Mashiur Malek), accusing Matiur Rahman, Prothom Alo reporter Shamsuzzaman Shams, an unnamed “assistant cameraman”, and unnamed others of “using print, online, and electronic media to tarnish the image and reputation of the state.”

In the FIR, the lawyer also mentioned that the accused were “purposefully spreading misinformation to deteriorate the law and order situation of the country.”

The case was filed under Sections 25, 31 and 35 of the DSA.

Among the accused, Shamsuzzaman Shams is now in jail.

The Prothom Alo reporter spoke to people including a child named Sabuj on March 25, on the eve of Independence Day, and submitted a report on people’s suffering due to price hikes. The report was published on March 26.

The news drew criticism as the newspaper used the child’s photo with a quote from a 40-year-old labourer named Zakir, identifying the child as Zakir and not Sabuj.

Prothom Alo withdrew the report within around half an hour and issued a correction later in the day, saying there was an inconsistency between the headline and the accompanying photo. Alongside the news item, the newspaper had also posted a poster on its social media handle.