A defamation case has been filed against four journalists for allegedly publishing and circulating “false, misleading and defamatory information” against State Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives, Mir Shahe Alam.
Tanveer Alam, treasurer of the Bogura Press Club, filed the case with the Senior Judicial Magistrate Court in Bogura on Monday.
Following a hearing, Senior Judicial Magistrate Mehedi Hasan took the allegations into cognisance and directed the relevant police station to record the complaint as a first information report (FIR) and take necessary legal action, plaintiff's lawyer Advocate Abdul Wahab told The Daily Star.
"The case will be forwarded to the respective police station to be officially recorded, followed by a legal investigation and subsequent actions," he said.
Contacted for comment, Ibrahim Ali, officer-in-charge of Bogura Sadar Police Station, told The Daily Star: "We have yet to receive the FIR for registration. When we receive it, we will inform the journalists."
The accused are: Mehedi Hasan, publisher and editor of Agrajatra Pratidin; Ashraf Ali Faruqui, news editor; Saleh Kaysar, reporter; and Shams, the newspaper's Bogura correspondent.
According to the case statement, the accused allegedly conspired to publish and circulate false, fabricated and misleading information with the intention of damaging the personal, social and political reputation of the state minister.
The statement alleges that on June 12, a post titled "Now the controversial State Minister Mir Shahe Alam advises journalists on the road incident" was circulated on social media, distorting remarks made by the minister during a press conference at the Bogura Press Club.
It further said that on June 13, provocative, misleading and defamatory comments about the minister were circulated on social media ahead of the prime minister's visit, during which state minister accompanied the premier.
According to the complaint, another campaign was circulated claiming that "Controversial State Minister Mir Shahe Alam was seen running in front of the prime minister's car in Cox's Bazar", allegedly with the intent of provoking public sentiment and causing severe mental distress and agitation to the plaintiff and residents of the district.
