'Defaming' Journo: Mainul released on bail
Former caretaker government adviser barrister Mainul Hosein was released on bail last night, over three months after he was sent to jail on charges of “defaming” a female journalist during a television talk show.
He walked out of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) around 9:00pm, where he had been undergoing treatment for 10 to 12 days in police custody.
Mahbubul Islam, jailer of Dhaka Central Jail, told The Daily Star that they received Mainul's bail order in the afternoon. “After verification, we gave clearance for his release.”
BSMMU Director Brig Gen Abdullah Al Harun said, “Mainul had been admitted to cabin no 520 under police guard. He left the hospital around 9:00pm after the jail guards came with his bail-related documents.”
On October 22 last year, the Detective Branch of police arrested Mainul from the capital's Uttara in a case filed against him for “defaming” journalist Masuda Bhatti in a talk show of a private television channel.
As many as 23 cases were filed against him across the country over the incident.
On January 13, the HC granted ad-interim bail to Mainul for six months in 11 cases lodged against the publisher and editorial board chief of The New Nation newspaper.
It also stayed the trial proceedings of 15 defamation cases for the next six months and issued separate rules asking the government to explain why the case proceedings against him should not be stopped.
On January 3, an HC bench directed the government to immediately admit Mainul to BSMMU for treatment.
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