The High Court has granted bail to ruling Awami League MP Golam Maula Rony in three cases including one for allegedly assaulting journalists.
Both the defence and the prosecution lawyers say there is no more bar to his getting released from detention in jail.
Rony moved the High Court having failed to secure bail from magistrate and judge courts for allegedly attacking journalists at his Topkhana Road office in Dhaka on Jul 20.
The bench of Justices Md Nizamul Huq and Kashefa Hussain granted him bail on Tuesday in two other cases filed over alleged extortion and murder threat with Golachipa police on Aug 1.
Defence counsel Ruhul Quddus Kajal told bdnews24.com Rony was shown arrested in all three cases.
“He is free to walk out of prison since the High Court granted him bail in the cases,” he said.
Deputy Attorney General Masud Hasan Chowdhury echoed him.
Kajal said the High Court had issued a rule asking authorities why the MP from Patuakhali-3 constituency should not be bailed in the cases. “He has been granted interim bail until the rule is disposed of,” he said.
The defendants have been given four weeks to reply to the rule.
Rony had allegedly attacked two journalists of private Independent TV on Jul 20 as they went to his office to interview him for an investigative programme.
A video footage showed him throwing punches and kicks at the TV crew.
The MP had offered apologies but rejected his involvement in with the incident.
A case on attempted murder was filed against Rony by the Independent TV authorities.
The following day, he surrendered to the court and secured bail but the court ordered his arrest on Jul 25 after the private TV station filed another General Diary against Rony for allegedly making threats on the phone.
Police detained him and produced before a Dhaka court which scrapped his bail plea and ordered him into jail.
Rony moved the judges’ court on Jul 28 for bail but was again refused.
Defence lawyer Abdul Baset Majumder said the case over alleged assault on journalists was filed over bad blood and was devoid of reality.
“The court granted him bail considering the overall situation,” he said.
His lawyers argued the MP should be present at the next session starting Sept 12.
Rony had been previously accused of assaulting journalists only months after his party came to power.
However, he came into the limelight for telling a TV channel that former Communications Minister Syed Abul Hossain had won his Cabinet berth by ‘winning a race’. -bdnews24.com
