Verdict on Janakantha editor Thursday

The Supreme Court yesterday fixed August 13 for delivering a verdict on a contempt of court rule against the editor and publisher of the daily Janakantha and its executive editor.

A six-member bench of SC's Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha set the date after completing hearing arguments on the rule.

The bench's five other judges are Justice Md Abdul Wahhab Miah, Justice Nazmun Ara Sultana, Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, Justice Md Imman Ali, and Justice Hasan Foez Siddique.

  The apex court issued the rule on July 29 against Janakantha Editor and Publisher Atiqullah Khan Masud and Executive Editor Swadesh Roy for publishing an article on July 16 under the headline, "Saka Paribarer Totporota! Palabar Path Kome Gechhe (Lobbying by Salauddin Quader's family! Escape route getting narrowed), written by Swadesh Roy.  

During yesterday's hearing, the SC said the media could not publish such a report and article that could influence the court or any verdict.

It said the July 16 article had hurt the dignity and image of the entire judiciary since it had scandalised the judges of the highest court.

The court said a series of articles were published by the daily in the last three or four days which were also contemptuous.

It said the conversations between two of its judges about constituting a bench for hearing a war crimes case was an internal matter of the judiciary, and nobody could record the conversations and the media could not publish it.

Only the chief justice has the constitutional authority to constitute the bench determining the jurisdiction of a judge to hear and dispose of a case, the SC said, adding that a particular judge could not be given rights to hear all war crimes cases.   

Several judges meet the chief justice every day on different issues, but if their conversations are recorded and published the judiciary cannot function, the court said.    

Salahuddin Dolon, lawyer for Atiqullah and Swadesh, told the court that the July 16 article was published on the basis of truth and in good faith, and there was no intention to malign the judiciary.

Saying that there was nothing contemptuous in the article, he prayed to the SC to exempt his clients from the charge.

Attorney General Mahbubey Alam told the court that the article was contemptuous as it had hurt the judiciary's dignity.

It was published in order to make the war crimes trial controversial, he argued.

 Atiqullah and Swadesh appeared at the SC yesterday and have to appear again on Thursday during delivery of the verdict, Mahbubey Alam told The Daily Star.  

A number of journalist leaders were present in the courtroom during the proceedings.