The High Court has issued a rule asking why the Anti-Corruption Commission’s (ACC) press briefings on former interim government adviser and National Citizen Party (NCP) Senior Joint Member Secretary Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuiyan should not be declared illegal.
The rule came following an initial hearing on a writ petition challenging the legal authority of the ACC’s press briefings held on September 2 and 13.
The NCP said in a statement that a High Court bench comprising Justice Md Bashir Ullah and Justice Md Hamidur Rahman issued the rule on Wednesday, asking the ACC to explain its position within four weeks.
The court also sought to know why the ACC’s statements claiming that the allegations against Asif had been initially substantiated at the inquiry stage should not be declared beyond its legal authority for violating Article 31 of the Constitution and the ACC’s Information Disclosure Policy, 2011.
The rule further asks why the commission should not be directed to refrain from holding press briefings on ongoing inquiries or investigations in ways that could undermine citizens’ constitutional rights to reputation and dignity, as well as standards recognised under international criminal law.
Senior lawyers Mohammad Hossain Lipu, Barrister Yusuf Ali, Zahirul Islam Musa, Mustafizur Rahman, Muhammad Ershadul Bari Khandaker and Mostafa Asgar Sharifi, along with other lawyers from the National Lawyers Alliance, represented Asif before the court.
Asif filed the writ petition with the High Court on September 27, 2026, alleging that the ACC had violated his constitutional rights, personal dignity and political reputation by declaring that the allegations against him had been initially substantiated before completing its inquiry and subsequently making other unproven allegations public.
The petition argued that while ensuring impartial inquiries into corruption allegations is the ACC’s responsibility, the commission has no authority to publicly portray anyone as guilty by making premature, conclusive statements about allegations still under investigation.
Such disclosures, it said, go against citizens’ rights to dignity and reputation protected under Article 31 of the Constitution and established principles of justice.
Asif said state institutions must exercise their powers within the limits set by the Constitution and the law.
Maintaining the legal distinction between investigating allegations and establishing criminal liability, while ensuring responsibility in public statements about ongoing inquiries, is essential for state institutions, he added.
He described the High Court's rule as an important step towards protecting constitutional rights, upholding the rule of law and ensuring accountability of state institutions.
Asif expressed hope that the matter would be resolved fairly through the subsequent legal proceedings.