Legal action against ‘false, misleading’ reports

Chief Adviser's Deputy Press Secretary Azad Majumder yesterday warned that legal action would be taken against anyone publishing "false or misleading" reports that create confusion among the people.

Speaking at a press conference at the Foreign Service Academy, he said news published by several media outlets about the revoking of the recognition of Mujibnagar government President Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and other cabinet members as freedom fighters was "false, baseless, and misleading".

He said the government hoped the news outlets that published "wrong, misleading" reports would correct their mistakes, publish a corrigendum in the same spot where they ran the wrong report, and apologise to their readers and the people of Bangladesh who were misled.

Azad said this was not the first time such incidents had occurred, adding, "We always try to provide you with accurate information to counter misinformation. The current interim government strongly upholds press freedom and welcomes criticism."

"No one has ever been granted a licence to publish false news at their whim. From now on, legal action will be taken against anyone who spreads such misinformation or misleading reports that confuse the people," he said.