Islami Andolan Bangladesh has strongly condemned the assault on Somoy TV journalist Asif Mohammad Siam by a group of lawyers inside the courtroom of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Hasib Ullas Pias.
In a statement issued on Friday, the party’s central publicity and dawah secretary Maulana Sheikh Fazlul Karim Maruf said the attack was a direct assault on press freedom and the constitutional right to gather news. He described the incident as a “deliberate attempt to intimidate the entire journalist community.”
“An attack on a journalist performing professional duties in a sensitive and prestigious place like a courtroom severely damages the image of the judiciary and the environment for independent journalism,” the statement said.
The party demanded that the lawyers involved be identified immediately, brought under the law without delay, and given exemplary punishment.
Maulana Fazlul Karim Maruf, who also heads Islami Andolan’s media cell, urged the court administration and law enforcement agencies to ensure the safety of journalists and guarantee a free environment for news gathering inside the courts.
“The security and rights of journalists to work freely in court must be ensured, and the perpetrators must face exemplary punishment,” he said, adding that protecting journalists in such spaces is an urgent constitutional responsibility.
