The High Court on Monday cleared the way for the police to continue investigation against renowned photographer Shahidul Alam in a case filed for spreading propaganda during the safe road movement in 2018.
The bench of Justice JBM Hassan and Justice Razik-Al-Jalil passed the order after rejecting a writ challenging the legality of the investigation into the case lodged under Section 57 of the Information and Technology (ICT) Act.
Shahidul, founder of Drik Gallery and Pathsala, has been accused of spreading lies and provocative statements on social media during the protests.
During the hearing, former attorney general AF Hasna Arif and Barrister Sara Hossain stood for Shahidul while Attorney General AM Amin Uddin and Deputy Attorney General Tushar Kanti Roy represented the state.
The probe was stayed for three months by the High Court on March 14, 2019. The stay order was later upheld by the Appellate Division.
In the petition, Shahidul alleged that the case had been lodged to harass him. He also challenged the legality of the case and sought the court’s order to stay all proceedings.
Shahidul was picked up from his Dhanmondi residence by detectives on August 5, 2018 after he gave an interview to Al Jazeera TV and also went live on Facebook in support of the students, who took to the streets of Dhaka demanding safety on roads.
The case was filed against him with Ramna police station the following day for “spreading propaganda” through Facebook.
The High Court granted him bail on November 15, 2018 and he was released from jail five days later on November 20.
