Photojournalist Kajol shown arrested under Digital Security Act

Photojournalist Shafiqul Islam Kajol was shown arrested today in a case filed under Digital Security Act.

Saifuzzaman Shikhor, a ruling party lawmaker from Magura-1, filed the case with Sher-E-Bangla Nagar Police Station on March 9.

Before showing Kajol arrested, Metropolitan Magistrate Dhiman Chandra Mondol of Virtual Court-4 of Dhaka witnessed him at Keraniganj Central Jail through videoconferencing.

Now, the defence lawyers can file bail petitions on behalf of Kajol, said court sources.

On June 16, another virtual court sent a virtual link to the jail authorities, custodian of the accused in the case.

CTTC Inspector Motlubur Rahman, also the investigation officer of the case, on May 4 submitted the petition with the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court of Dhaka.

Metropolitan Magistrate BakiBillah asked Jashore jail authorities to produce Kajol before it on June 1.

But the court could not show Kajol arrested in the case as he was not produced before the court on that date due to ongoing shutdown of all regular courts across the country.

Two more cases were also filed against Kajol under the same act with Hagaribagh and Kamrangirchar police stations on March 10 and 11 respectively.

Fifty-three days into his disappearance, Kajol was found by Border Guard Bangladesh in Benapole on May 3.

He was then arrested -- initially on charges of trespassing -- but he was granted bail after being produced before a Jashore court.

Later in the evening, he was shown held under section 54 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) after police informed the court that three more cases against Kajol were now pending with different police stations in the capital.

 The court then sent him to Jashore jail.

The Supreme Court on June 7 cleared the barriers and directed all magistrates to hold hearings on any prayers either a remand or a petition submitted by law enforcing agencies for showing any accused arrested in any criminal cases without their presence before the court.

Before the gazette, it was a mandatory provision of the Criminal Procedure Code that during remand prayer hearing and a petition for showing any accused (now in jail custody in another case) the accused must be produced before the court.