The High Court on Monday directed the government and the city police to take appropriate action against Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami acting secretary general ATM Azharul Islam for committing contempt against the Supreme Court in a recent statement.
A bench of Justice AHM Shamsuddin Chowdhury and Justice Gobinda Chandra Tagore also directed Azharul to appear before it on August 8 to explain a written statement he had made on July 19 at the party's central office.
Azharul reportedly stated that the Awami League led government had abolished the provision of election time caretaker system keeping the gun on the Supreme Court's shoulders as the ruling party wants to continue in power by holding election under its own supervision.
The court also asked him to explain in two weeks why he should not be punished on charge of committing contempt of court by making the 'derogatory statement.'
The court also directed the home secretary, inspector general of police, Dhaka Metropolitan Police commissioner, and the Supreme Court registrar to explain in two weeks their failure to take action against Azharul for making the statement.
It passed the order after its attention was drawn to the statement by a contempt petition filed by M Ahiduzzaman, a teacher of the Institute of Education and Research of Dhaka University.
Ahiduzzaman had first filed a writ petition challenging the respondents' failure to take action against Azharul as the court has no jurisdiction to hear the matter of contempt.
But the court asked the petitioner's lawyer Manzill Murshid to correct the petition and bring the contempt of court charge.
The court pointed out that Azharul's statement is defamatory to all the judges of the Supreme Court, and as judges of the court they have the power to issue a contempt rule.
In the modified petition counsel Manzill Murshid told the court that Azharul had undermined the authority of the Supreme Court in his written statement which alleged that the government had used the Supreme Court as an instrument to repeal the thirteen amendment of the constitution.
He contended that as the custodian of the constitution the Supreme Court should take action
against Azharul under appropriate provision of the law as the Supreme Court registrar did not take any action against him as per the law.
On July 20, the same bench directed the DMP commissioner to take appropriate action against Fazlul Haque Amini,
the chairman of Islami Oikya Jote for his
statement against the
constitution.
Amini was asked to appear before it on August 2 to explain his statement, which was published in the daily Amar Desh on July 15. He had allegedly stated at a meeting with Bangladesh Islamic Ain Bastabayan Committee, at his
office at Lalbagh on July 14, that the amended constitution would be thrown away and into the dustbin.
Source : New Age
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