Mahmudur Rahman didn’t apply for suspension of sentence: Adviser Nazrul

Acting Editor of Dainik Amar Desh newspaper Mahmudur Rahman was sent to jail because he did not apply for suspension of sentence, said Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Adviser Dr Asif Nazrul. "If he had applied, we would have recommended suspension of his sentence," he said.

He said this in a video message on Wednesday (October 2).

Asif Nazrul said in a video message that journalist Mahmudur Rahman went to seek bail in a case. Then he is in prison. This incident saddened many and also has offended someone. It seems to everyone that why Mahmudur Rahman, one of the pioneers of the anti-fascist struggle during the government that came after the student revolution, is in prison.

Pointing out that Sheikh Hasina's government punished Mahmudur Rahman in a fake case, he said, "I respect Mahmudur Rahman a lot." Sheikh Hasina had a fascist regime in this country. He started an intellectual fight against it. For this he had to suffer torture. He was punished by the government of the fascist Sheikh Hasina in an unbelievable and highly bogus case.

He also said that the trial of this case had been completed. A baseless case was also filed against his wife before he came to the country. He filed an appeal seeking a stay of sentence in that case. This application was made to the Ministry of Home Affairs. When the Ministry of Home Affairs seeks our opinion, we strongly recommend to look positively. On our recommendation, his sentence was suspended and an appeal was granted.

The legal adviser said that Mahmudur Rahman is in jail in the case in which he was punished, another elite journalist Shafiq Rehman was also sentenced in the same case. He appealed to the Ministry of Home Affairs seeking suspension of the sentence. In our opinion his sentence is stayed and his appeal is granted. Mahmudur Rahman did not do it. His self-esteem is very strong. He is a very determined person. Very patriotic. Maybe because of these reasons, he did not apply for appeal seeking suspension of sentence. Neither the ministry nor the government had the opportunity to do this.

He said that he sought bail from the court that sentenced him. In our Code of Criminal Procedure, if a court sentences someone for more than one year, that court cannot grant bail to the convicted person. But if an application is made to a higher court, that court can grant bail. So Mahmudur Rahman's lawyer can apply to the court, on the day of the judgment, all the documents including the copy of the court's judgment were quickly explained. For whatever reason, he has not yet applied for bail in that court. That court has jurisdiction to grant bail on application. There the way for him to get bail will be paved. I hope that he will be able to freely play his role as a journalist or an intellectual out of his patriotism.