HC rejects writ challenging Sec 57 of ICT Act

The High Court on Wednesday turned down a writ petition seeking the court's directive to scrap the sections 57 and 86 of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Act. An HC bench comprising Justice Farah Mahbub and Justice Kazi Md Ejarul Haque Akand passed the order after a hearing on the petition. Barrister Imran A Siddique and Advocate Shishir Manir stood for the petitioner while deputy attorney general Amit Talukdar represented the state. On Tuesday, the 2-member HC bench fixed today (Wednesday) for pronouncing judgment on a writ filed by one Zakir Hossain challenging the legality of the Section 57 of the ICT Act. The HC on Tuesday also issued a rule asking the government to explain why the Section 57 of the ICT Act should not be declared contrary to the Constitution. The Sec-57 stipulates: “If any person deliberately publishes or transmits or causes to be published or transmitted on the website or in electronic form any material which is fake and obscene or its effect is such as to tend to deprave and corrupt persons who are likely, having regard to all relevant circumstances, to read, see or hear the matter contained or embodied in it, or causes to deteriorate or creates possibility to deteriorate law and order, prejudice the image of the State or person or causes to hurt or may hurt religious belief or instigate against any person or organisation, then this activity of him will be regarded as an offense”.
Eleven teachers and writers filed the writ petition with the HC on Sunday challenging the legality of Sec-57 of the Information Communication Technology (Amendment) Act 2013.
On August, 26, Bangladesh Supreme Court lawyer Yunus Ali Akand issued a legal notice on the government demanding that sections 57 and 86 of the ICT (Amendment) Act 2013 be repealed.
Meanwhile, hearing on another writ filed by Zakir Hossain challenging the legality of Sec-57 of the ICT Act began on the following day at the bench of Justice Farah Mahbub and Justice Kazi Md Ejarul Haque Akand.
On August, 30, the HC rejected a petition filed by Supreme Court lawyer Yunus Ali Akand cancelling the 57 and 86 sections of the ICT Act, according to a news agency.
- biplab