Palak sued under Cyber Security Act

A case has been filed against the former State Minister for Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology Zunaid Ahmed Palak under Sections 25 and 27 of the Cyber Security Act, 2023, for spreading false information through digital media and damaging the reputation of the state.

Lawyer Ishrat Hasan has confirmed that Sohag Mollik filed the case in the court of Judge AM Zulfikar Hayat at the Dhaka Cyber Tribunal.

According to the case statement, the accused, a law-abiding and conscientious citizen of Bangladesh, is the former Minister of State for Posts, Telecommunications, and Information Technology. The recent anti-discrimination student movement resulted in several nationwide shutdowns of mobile and broadband internet, disrupting public life and damaging Bangladesh's international reputation.

Earlier, mobile internet was shut down nationwide on the night of July 17, and broadband internet was shut down on July 18. As a result, all types of internet connections remained disconnected for five days, and social media platforms, including Facebook, YouTube, and WhatsApp were inaccessible for 13 days.

Regarding the nationwide internet shutdown, Palak said on July 18 that the shutdown was necessary due to the situation. Later on July 24, he clarified that the internet connection had been disrupted due to damage from a fire at the data center, and on July 27, he reiterated that the government had not shut down the internet; rather, the shutdown was a result of other factors.