The Editors’ Council on Saturday expressed deep concern and strongly protested against the arrest and imprisonment of Dainik Agrajatra Pratidin acting editor Md Rezanur Islam, in connection with a case filed over a report published about local government state minister Mir Shahe Alam in Bogura.
‘The Editors’ Council believes that this incident is completely contradictory to the commitments to press freedom and freedom of expression outlined in the BNP’s election manifesto and its 31-point state reform programme,’ a statement said.
The statement, signed by the Editors’ Council president Nurul Kabir and general secretary Dewan Hanif Mahmud, strongly condemned the incident and demanded the immediate release of Rezanur Islam.
The council said that any individual aggrieved by a news report, regardless of the public office they hold, has access to legal and institutional mechanisms for seeking redress.
It noted that such individuals might lodge complaints with the Press Council, the legally established body responsible for adjudicating and resolving such matters, or pursue remedies through the courts under existing laws.
However, in the present case, a journalist had been arrested and sent to jail over a case filed by another journalist, the statement said.
The Editors’ Council observed that similar patterns of lawsuits, arrests, and harassment of journalists over published reports had been witnessed during the tenure of the Awami League government.
‘The latest incident reflected a troubling recurrence of that practice,’ the statement read.
According to the statement, the tendency to file criminal cases against journalists, arrest them, and send them to prison over news reports is a matter of deep concern for independent journalism and the right to freedom of expression.
The statement added that such actions would have a negative impact on the independence of newspapers and media professionals.
The council also said that, with Bangladesh currently ranked 152nd in the World Press Freedom Index, incidents of this nature would further accelerate the deterioration of media freedom in the country and damage Bangladesh’s image in the international arena.
The Editors’ Council reiterated its demand for the immediate release of Rezanur Islam and urged the authorities to ensure that grievances against journalists were addressed through existing legal and institutional frameworks, particularly through the Press Council, instead of resorting to arrests and criminal proceedings.
