The Global Investigation Journalism Network (GIJN) has condemned the arrest of journalist Rozina Islam in a tweet saying, “What is going on in #bangladesh? One of the country's most respected women journalists is detained for hours. Hey, Health Ministry: journalism is not a crime! The world is watching.”
The GIJN is an international organisation which promotes investigative journalism.
Earlier, a Dhaka court has turned down the remand plea for Prothom Alo’s journalist Rozina Islam and ordered to send her to jail.
The hearing of Rozina’s bail plea likely to take place on Thursday.
Rozina Islam was taken to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) court from Shahbagh police station around 11.00 am. Police sought a five-day remand of Rozina. Later, magistrate Mohammad Jasim denied the remand plea.
Prothom Alo’s lawyers Ehsanul Haque Somaji, Ashraf Ul Alam and Prashanta Kumar Karmakar stood for Rozina in the court. Ain O Salish Kendra’s lawyer Abdur Rashid, BLAST’s lawyer Moshiur Rahman and lawyer Suman Kumar Roy also took part in the hearing.
Metropolitan public prosecutor Abdullah Abu represented the state in the hearing.
Rozina was taken to the court from the Shahbagh police station around 8.00 am. At the time, Rozina’s husband Monirul Islam said she had kept in the court custody.
Earlier, Rozina Islam went to the health ministry in the secretariat on professional purposes. There the officials of the ministry detained her in a room around 3.00 pm. At one point Rozina fell sick.
Later, around 8.30 pm, the senior journalist was handed over to the police of Shahbagh police station. The law enforcement took Rozina Islam to the Shahbagh police station around 9.00 pm.
Around 11.45 pm police said a case had been filed against Rozina Islam under the Official Secret Act. She had been shown arrested in this case.
