Somoy TV broadcast: Appellate Division’s order on HC stay deferred to Sept 1

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court today deferred to September 1 the delivery of its order on a petition that sought stay on the High Court order, which on August 19 suspended Somoy TV broadcast for seven days.
A bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed, which was scheduled for passing the order on the petition today, deferred the date as one of its judges was on leave.
On August 21, Ahmed Jobaer, a director of Somoy Media Limited, submitted the petition to the Appellate Division seeking stay on the High Court order.
On August 19, following a writ petition filed by Shampa Rahman, managing director of Somoy Media Ltd, the High Court ordered the Bangladesh Satellite Company Limited to stop broadcast of Somoy TV for the next seven days. The broadcasting of the private television channel was stopped at night the same day.
Today, the writ petitioner’s lawyer Advocate Ahsanul Karim told the Appellate Division that the Somoy TV broadcast has resumed from last night as the seven-day duration after the HC order yesterday expired.
There is no effectiveness of this case now, he said.
Meanwhile, Ahmed Jobaer’s lawyer AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon told the Appellate Division that some observation needs to come from this court about stopping broadcasting of any television channel.
Somoy TV broadcast was stopped following a HC order, not under the government order, he added.