The presiding judge of the special bench of the Appellate Division, Justice M Ruhul Amin, on Thursday clamped restrictions on newspersons in covering the proceedings in his court -- not on their entrance to the court building -- during the hearing of the appeal against the High Court's stay order on Dhaka-10 parliamentary by-polls.

The reporters converged on the Supreme Court premises yesterday before the start of the hearing of the appeal, but guards stopped them from entering the building. The guards like on Saturday again cited 'directives from the high ups' for their bizarre action.

The journalists met the registrar of the Supreme Court, Kamrul Islam Siddqui, who told them that he did not issue the order nor did he know of such a bar until the journalists met him.

Barrister Rokanuddin Mahmud and Advocate TH Khan, counsels for both sides, briefed the journalists on the hearing of the appeal petition which the newspapers ran yesterday.

The restriction prompted the journalists to stage an impromptu sit-in on Saturday in front of the Supreme Court building. Judges and lawyers alike also discussed the matter in the court yesterday.