Contemnor has right to appeal
Disposing of a writ petition, the High Court yesterday observed that a person could appeal to the Supreme Court against an International Crimes Tribunal verdict convicting him or her of contempt of court.
The HC also said a contemnor before the ICT could approach the Appellate Division of the SC, seeking “complete justice” in any case under Article 104 of the Constitution, petitioners' lawyer Rashna Imam told The Daily Star.
Citing the HC observations, she also said the apex court has inherent power under Article 104 of the Constitution to do complete justice in any case.
Rashna, however, said following the HC order, there was no legal bar for the Tribunal-2 to continue the trial proceedings against the 23 eminent personalities, including the 12 writ petitioners facing contempt of court charge.
The HC bench of Justice Farah Mahbub and Justice Kazi Md Ejarul Haque Akondo came up with the order after hearing the writ petition filed by 12 eminent personalities, challenging the legality of two provisions of the International Crimes (Tribunals) Act, 1973, which does not permit a person to move appeal against the tribunal's judgment convicting him or her in a contempt of court case.
Details of the HC order could not be known immediately as the court was yet to release the full text of the order.
Deputy Attorney General Amatul Karim Swapna told this correspondent that the HC bench in its order observed that the writ petition was not acceptable, since any individual or group of people cannot challenge any provision of the ICT law under Article 47 of the Constitution.
The writ petition is premature, as the petitioners were not yet convicted by the Tribunal-2, she said, citing the HC order.
The DAG said the HC could have rejected the writ petition, but disposed of the petition with the observations.
She said she gave her opinion to the attorney general for filing a petition with the SC for scrapping the HC order.
Twelve eminent personalities, who face contempt of court charge, filed the writ petition on April 22 with the HC, praying for staying the contempt proceedings against them.
The Tribunal-2 had issued contempt of court notice against the petitioners and 37 others for issuing a statement criticising the conviction of Dhaka-based British journalist David Bergman.
On December 2 last year, the tribunal found Bergman, editor (special reports) of The New Age, guilty of contempt for two of his blogs on the verdict of Abul Kalam Azad, also known as Bachchu Razakar.
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