The High Court on Tuesday granted interim bails to human rights defender and rights organisation Odhikar secretary Adilur Rahman Khan and his colleague ASM Nasiruddin Elan.
The court also admitted to hear the joint appeal filed by the two rights defenders against the lower court verdict jailing them for two years and a fine of Tk 10,000 or to suffer one more month in jail.
On September 25, Adilur and Elan filed an appeal with the High Court challenging the Dhaka Cyber Tribunal verdict that jailed them for two years on September 14.
The High Court stayed the fine until disposal of the appeal.
The single bench of Justice Emdadul Hoque Azad passed the order after hearing an appeal filed by Adilur and Elan.
The state also filed separate appeals to increase the jail terms in the case filed against them under Section 57 of the Information and Communication Technology Act 2006, stating that the ICT act prescribes minimum jail terms for seven years while 14 years as maximum.
Adilur and Elan’s lawyer Mohammad Ruhul Amin pleaded for the bails for the two Odhikar leaders—secretary Adilur and director Elan – stating that there would be possibility of getting his clients released at the final hearing by the High Court.
The Dhaka Cyber Tribunal on September 14 jailed Adilur and Elan for two years for a fact-finding report on the violence during Hefazat-e-Islam demonstrations in Dhaka and overnight operations against the protesters in May 2013.
Lawyer Ruhul pleaded that the Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh had prepared a ‘list of 61 deceased’ during the law enforcement agencies’ raid on its rally at Shapla Crossing in the capital in May 5–6, 2013, arguing that the two Odhikar leaders had no role in preparing the list.
