Ctg court upholds Chinmoy's bail hearing date on 2 Jan
On 3 December, the former Iskcon Bangladesh spokesperson’s bail hearing was postponed to 2 January, after no lawyer appeared to represent him
A Chattogram court today (12 December) upheld 2 January as the date for the bail hearing of Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari, the spokesperson of Bangladesh Sammilita Sanatani Jagaran Jote, in a sedition case, after a plea was filed to bring the hearing date forward.
Metropolitan Sessions Judge Md Saiful Islam passed the order, Public Prosecutor Mofizul Haque Bhuiyan told The Business Standard.
Supreme Court lawyer Rabindra Ghosh today submitted a vakalatnama on behalf of local lawyer Sumit Acharya at 2:30pm. However, the court said that the concerned lawyer must be present to verify the vakalatnama.
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"After lawyer Sumit expressed his inability to be present in court, the judge recorded the petition and set the hearing for the previously scheduled date," Mofizul said.
Rabindra told TBS, "I have submitted my vakalatnama signed by Chinmoy. The prosecution argues that my vakalatnama cannot be accepted without a local lawyer's endorsement.
"No law in Bangladesh prohibits an external lawyer from handling a case without a local lawyer's involvement," he added.
However, Chittagong District Bar Association General Secretary Md Ashraf Hossain Chowdhury Razzak said, "The court has stated that under no circumstances can he [Rabindra] fight the case. If the person who has signed the vakalatnama seeks his assistance, then he can assist, but he cannot directly move it in any way."
Ashraf further explained that there is a High Court ruling on this matter. In line with that, if a local lawyer engages him, then he can assist with the case. "This is not just a rule of Chattogram bar. It is the standard practice across Bangladesh. He [Rabindra] has come to move the case without following procedure."
On 10 December, Rabindra submitted three petitions, including one to bring Chinmoy's bail hearing date forward. The state objected, citing the absence of a valid vakalatnama, and the court subsequently rejected the petitions.
On 25 October, a BNP leader filed a sedition case at the port city's Kotwali Police Station, accusing Chinmoy, also known as Chandan Kumar Dhar, and 18 others of disrespecting the national flag during a rally of the Hindu community in the New Market area that day.
Chinmoy, the former spokesperson of Iskcon Bangladesh, was arrested by police at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka on 25 November.
The next day, a Chattogram court rejected Chinmoy's bail plea and sent him to jail.
On 3 December, Chinmoy's bail hearing was postponed to 2 January, after no lawyer appeared to represent him.
