Govt out to restore \\\'black law\\\' to hide misrule: Rafiq

FE Team | Published: July 05, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

BNP standing committee member Rafiqul Islam Miah alleged on Friday that the government is trying to restore a controversial provision of the press law in a bid to hide its corruption and misrule, reports UNB.
Addressing a discussion at the Jatiya Press Club, he said the government is now conspiring to bring back a scrapped provision of the Printing Presses and Publications (Declaration and Registration) Act 1973 so that people cannot read news about the ruling party men's graft like depositing money in Swiss Bank and their other plundering.
Jatiya Manobadhikar Parishad organised the discussion protesting what it said fresh ill-move of the government to gag the newspapers.
"The lone motive (behind it) is to control the country's newspapers and mass media as done during Baksal in the mid-70s so that people cannot have access to information about any incident (of corruption and misrules)," Rafiqul said.
In 1991, then President Justice Shahabuddin Ahmad scrapped the provision of district magistrate's authority to cancel the declaration of any newspaper following a strong demand by journalists.
Rafiqul Islam said, "It'll be a severe blow to the country's newspaper and electronic media, if the provision of the printing law is reinstated. The newspapers will lose freedom."
Subsequently in 1991, Khaleda Zia government passed the ordinance in parliament promulgated by President Shahabuddin Ahmed to scrap the provision, he added.
About the current opposition in parliament, he said there is no opposition in the House now. "Those who claim themselves as the opposition also share members in the cabinet."
President of a faction of Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ) Shawkat Mahmud, general secretary of the Jatiya Press Club Syed Abdal Ahmed, BNP leader Habibur Rahman Habib and President of Swadhinata Forum Abu Naser Mohammad Rahmatullah and President of the Zia Nagarik Forum Miah Anwar Hossain, among others, addressed the discussion held with vice president of the Parishad Rafiqul Islam in the chair.