Interim government accused of targeting Anis Alamgir

Bangla Press Desk:   Journalist Anis Alamgir has been imprisoned for criticising the government and has remained behind bars for the past two months. He was picked up from a gym in Dhanmondi, Dhaka, on 14 December last year and later shown arrested in multiple cases. He was also taken on remand. His detention raised questions about freedom of expression, even during the tenure of the interim government.

Various journalists’ associations and human rights organisations condemned the move, comparing it to practices under the now-banned Awami League government, where individuals were detained without specific charges and subsequently shown arrested in filed cases. Some questioned whether his fate was a consequence of his strong criticism of the government. Despite this, his bail petitions have repeatedly been rejected, and he was seen expressing frustration and breaking down in tears in court.

On the night of 14 December, a complaint was filed at Uttara West Police Station by a representative of the July Revolutionary Alliance, accusing Alamgir and four others of promoting the reinstatement of the banned Awami League through social media and television talk shows after 5 August 2024. He was subsequently shown arrested in a case filed under the Anti-Terrorism Act and remanded for five days before being sent to jail on 20 December.

On 15 January, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) filed a separate case against him on charges of amassing wealth beyond known sources of income and money laundering, alleging he possessed assets worth Tk32.648 million — around 77 per cent of his total wealth — beyond legitimate income. On 28 January, a Dhaka court ordered that he be shown arrested in the ACC case and sent to jail, where he remains.

Human rights group Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) said applying the Anti-Terrorism Act against a journalist constituted a misuse of the law and undermined democratic principles and freedom of expression. The Editors’ Council said the move evoked memories of state repression of journalists during past authoritarian regimes. Source: daily Sun

BP/TD