Shahidul's bail hearing tomorrow

The High Court (HC) today fixed tomorrow for hearing a petition filed by internationally noted photographer Shahidul Alam seeking bail in a case against him under the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Act.

The High Court bench of Justice Sheikh Abdul Awal and Justice Bhisnadeb Chakroborty fixed the date after Assistant Attorney General Mohammad Ali Jinnah sought time from the court for hearing the petition.

Shahidul's lawyer Barrister Sara Hossain prayed to the court for hearing the petition today.

Earlier on November 1, another HC bench of Justice AKM Asaduzzaman and Justice SM Mozibur Rahman dropped the same bail petition from a hearing list.

Shahidul filed a bail petition with the HC on September 18, in the case filed under the controversial Section 57 of the ICT Act, accusing him of “spreading propaganda against the government”.

Shahidul was picked up by plainclothes men from his home on August 5. Police filed the case and produced him before a Dhaka court the next day. He was placed on a seven-day remand, and sent to jail on August 13.

On September 4, a judge of an HC bench felt “embarrassed” to hear his bail petition, and forwarded it to the chief justice for decision.