The High Court has issued a rule asking why press briefings held by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) leveling corruption allegations against National Citizen Party (NCP) leader Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuiyan before starting an inquiry should not be declared illegal.
A High Court bench of Justice Md Bashir Ullah and Justice Md Hamidur Rahman gave the ACC four weeks to respond to the rule in an order issued Wednesday morning, November 11. The bench had set the date for its order after concluding a writ hearing on November 4.
Earlier, on September 29, a vacation High Court bench had removed the writ petition from its cause list, prompting petitioners to bring it back for hearing after the court recess.
On September 2 and September 13, an ACC deputy director and public relations officer alongside an assistant director held two separate news briefings announcing preliminary truth to corruption and money-laundering allegations after deciding to initiate inquiries against Asif Mahmud.
Asif Mahmud’s lawyer, Yusuf Ali, argued that the ACC’s press conferences violated protections for dignity and reputation guaranteed under Article 31 of the Constitution, as well as the commission’s own information disclosure guidelines.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report