‘Giving fugitive PK Halder screen time a despicable act’

Referring to Ekattor TV allowing Proshanta Kumar Halder, a fugitive accused of a money laundering case, to participate in a live talk show and interview, the High Court has observed that no accused or convict of non-bailable and cognizable offences is entitled to make any comment or interview through the media.

"…Because it may create confusion, affect the merit of the case and also lower the image and sanctity of the judiciary and the investigating agency," the HC bench of Justice Md Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice Ahmed Sohel said.

The HC bench made the observation today in the full text of an order issued on December 30 last year following a petition filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission seeking necessary directives against the authorities concerned of Ekattor TV, a private television channel, for allowing Proshanta Kumar Halder, known as PK Halder, to participate in a live talk show programme and broadcasting his interview.

The HC also directed the Ekattor TV channel to submit on January 10 the video clips of the interview and conversations PK Halder had with the channel on December 28.

The channel aired an interview of PK Halder at 10:00pm on December 28 and connected him to the talk show Ekattor Journal at 11:30pm the same day. There PK Halder refuted the allegations of laundering a huge amount of money abroad.

On December 30, ACC's lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan and Deputy Attorney General AKM Amin Uddin Manik prayed to the HC bench to initiate contempt of court proceedings against the authorities concerned of Ekattor TV.

On January 8 last year, the anti-graft body filed a case against PK Halder on charges of illegally amassing wealth worth Tk 275 crore.