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The High Court has granted bail to journalist Anis Alamgir in a case under the Anti-Terrorism Act at Dhaka's Uttara West Police Station, two and a half months after his arrest.
The High Court bench of Justice KM Zahid Sarwar and Justice Sheikh Abu Taher granted his bail on Thursday, bdnews24.com reports.
The journalist, however, will not be released from jail as he remains arrested in a case filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
Lawyer Tamanna Ferdous, who represented Anis in court, told bdnews24.com: “After hearing the rule in the Uttara West Police Station’s Anti-Terrorism Act case, the court has made it absolute and granted bail. The rule was issued in this case on Feb 19, and the hearing of that rule was held today.”
The lawyer noted that Anis is not being released right away, saying, “He is not being released right away because there is another case by the ACC against him. He has been shown arrested in that case. We are also pursuing the ACC case through the legal process.”
A team of Detective Branch took journalist Anis to the agency’s office on the night of Dec 14 for “questioning”.
The same day at midnight, a man named Ariyan Ahmed, identified as a member of an organisation called the “July Revolutionary Alliance”, filed a case against Alamgir and three others, accusing them of “conspiring to destabilise the state and inciting a banned organisation”.
The three others accused in the case are actress Meher Afroz Shaon, fashion model Maria Kispotta, and television host Imtu Ratish.
Alamgir was remanded for five days on Dec 15 and sent to prison on Dec 20, where he remains.
On Jan 22, the Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court rejected his bail, and his lawyer appealed the decision with the High Court.
Then, on Jan 15, the ACC filed a case against Anis over charges of acquiring illegal wealth. On Jan 28, the court showed him arrested in response to an ACC petition.
Anisur Rahman Alamgir, who works for various media outlets, including the Daily Ajker Kagoj, is widely known by his pen name Anis Alamgir.
Anis, a part-time university teacher, made headlines over his statements on various issues, including contemporary politics, on television talk shows. Several of his Facebook posts also made the news.
His wife Shahnaz Chowdhury claims her husband is facing jail time for exercising his right to “free speech”.
“Syeda Rizwana Hasan, [former] advisor to the interim government, had claimed no journalist was arrested for free speech. So why was Anis Alamgir detained?
“He was arrested for speaking freely. Is he a terrorist, or has he incited violence? What led to his summoning and arrest?” she asked.
On Feb 19, she told bdnews24.com, “He is not the only suspect. The others are free, yet he remains imprisoned for expressing his opinion.”
Shahnaz also dismissed the ACC case as false, claiming it stems from a government-granted journalist quota he sold for some funds.