State seeks stay on Chinmoy’s bail, hearing Sunday

The state has moved to suspend the bail granted to Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari, spokesperson for Bangladesh Sammilita Sanatani Jagran Jote, in a sedition case, with a hearing scheduled for Sunday, May 4, in the Appellate Division’s Chamber Judge’s Court.

Additional Attorney General Mohammad Arshadur Rouf confirmed it to Jago News on Wednesday, April 30.

Earlier that day, the High Court, led by Justices Md Atowar Rahman and Md Ali Reza, granted bail to Chinmoy, upholding a rule issued on his bail application. 

Representing Chinmoy’s were lawyers ZI Khan Panna, Prabir Halder, and Apurba Kumar Bhattacharya, while the state was represented by Attorney General Md Asaduzzaman, Additional Attorney Generals Barrister Anik R. Haque and Muhammad Abdul Jabbar Bhuyan, and Deputy Attorneys General Mohammad Abdul Baset and Farid Uddin Khan.

That evening, Deputy Attorney General Farid Uddin Khan informed Jago News that the state had applied to suspend the High Court’s bail order. 

The Chamber Judge initially stayed the bail but later withdrew the suspension, according to Chinmoy’s lawyer Apurba Kumar Bhattacharya, who noted the matter would be heard on Sunday.

The High Court had issued a rule on February 4, questioning why Chinmoy should not be granted bail, and set April 30 for the hearing. 

Chinmoy was arrested on November 25, 2024, in a sedition case filed on October 31 by Firoz Khan, then General Secretary of Chandgaon Mohra Ward BNP, against Das and 19 others at Kotwali Police Station. Khan was later expelled from BNP.

On November 26, 2024, Chinmoy’s bail was rejected, and he was sent to jail, triggering clashes at the Chittagong court premises that resulted in the death of lawyer Saiful Islam. 

A strike protesting the killing halted proceedings, and subsequent bail hearings on December 3 and January 2, 2025, were unsuccessful due to the absence of Chinmoy’s lawyers and another rejection, respectively.

FH/NMA