Dhaka, March 20 – The High Court (HC) on Wednesday banned the making of any movie or drama on Jaha Alam, who was wrongly imprisoned for three years in place of the real accused, in connection with more than two dozen corruption cases.
In response to a petition, an HC bench, comprising Justice Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice KM Hafizul Alam, came up with the embargo.
After the HC order, ACC lawyer advocate Khurshid Alam Khan told reporters that the ban would remain effective until disposal of a rule issued by another HC bench relating to the Jaha Alam story. The
information secretary and cultural affairs secretaries have been asked to implement the HC order so that no film or drama is made on Jaha Alam.
On Tuesday, Advocate Khurshid Alam Khan filed the petition on behalf of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), seeking a stay order.
Citing from the petition, Khan told reporters that the case regarding Jaha Alam is pending before the High Court, so no film can be made on the sub-judice matter
On Monday, Khan had said that recently they have seen the news about a film on Jaha Alam, but the fact is the case is still under trial.
In 2014, the ACC prosecuted one Abu Saleque in 26 cases on charges relating to loan fraud, involving Tk. 185 million, from Sonali Bank.
Officials of the bank, however, identified Jaha Alam as Saleque and the jute mill worker was arrested in 2016.
Later, the HC issued a suo motu order to free Jaha Alam following a report published in a national daily and shown on a television channel in February.
Jaha Alam was freed from Gazipur’s Kashimpur Jail after serving three years.
Filmmaker Maria Tushar had told the media that she wanted to make a film based on Jaha Alam’s experience. Tushar even registered at the Bangladesh Film Development Corporation (BFDC) to direct the film.
Jaha Alam said he was not aware of any move to make a film on him.
The ACC submitted an affidavit on March 5 in connection with the Jaha Alam incident. On March 6, the HC observed that the ACC has to take the responsibility for Jaha Alam’s ordeal, as the commission failed to take any step to secure his bail even after getting proof of his innocence in the case. – Staff Reporter
