The Chamber Court of the Appellate Division has withdrawn the stay order on the bail granted to Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari, the spokesperson of the Bangladesh Sammilita Sanatani Jagaran Jote, in a sedition case filed over alleged desecration of the national flag. A fresh hearing on the matter is scheduled for Sunday, May 4.
Justice Md. Rezaul Haque of the Chamber Court issued the withdrawal order on the evening of Wednesday, April 30. Earlier in the day, the High Court had granted bail to Chinmoy around 2 PM, but the Chamber Court suspended it around 5:30 PM following a state appeal.
The High Court had originally fixed April 30 for the hearing on a rule issued regarding Chinmoy’s bail. On April 23, the hearing was postponed upon a time plea from the state.
On April 30, Chinmoy was represented in court by lawyer Apurba Kumar Bhattacharya, while the state was represented by Attorney General Md. Asaduzzaman, Deputy Attorney General Mohammad Abdul Baset, and Farid Uddin Khan.
Previously, the High Court issued a rule on February 4 after hearing Chinmoy’s interim bail plea, asking why he should not be granted bail. The rule appeared in the cause list on March 19, when the court scheduled a later date for the hearing, eventually placing it on April 30’s agenda.
Earlier, on January 2, the Chattogram Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s Court rejected Chinmoy’s bail plea. On January 12, he moved to the High Court seeking interim bail, resulting in the February 4 rule.
Chinmoy Krishna Das was arrested on November 26 last year in connection with the sedition case. Following his bail rejection that day, violence broke out at the Chattogram court premises, during which lawyer Saiful Islam was beaten and fatally stabbed. The scheduled bail hearing for the next day was postponed as lawyers observed a work stoppage in protest. The hearing was later set for December 3, but was delayed again due to the absence of Chinmoy’s legal counsel.
The sedition case was filed on October 31, 2023, by Firoz Khan, General Secretary of the BNP’s Chandgaon Mohra Ward unit, at Kotwali Police Station, accusing Chinmoy and 18 others. Firoz Khan was later expelled from the BNP. Several individuals, including Chinmoy, were arrested in the case.