The High Court has ordered private television channel Somoy TV to suspend its broadcast for seven days, following a preliminary hearing of a writ petition. The directive was issued to the Chairman of Bangladesh Satellite Company Limited on Monday by a High Court bench comprised of Justice Naima Haider and Justice Shashanka Shekhar Sarkar.
The writ petition was filed by Shampa Rahman, the newly appointed Managing Director of Somoy Media Limited, seeking to ensure that the TV channel could operate without external influence or coercion.
Senior lawyer Ahsanul Karim, representing the petitioner, explained that the writ was filed to protect the channel’s editorial independence. Following the issuance of the rule, the court ordered Somoy TV to halt its broadcast for seven days.
The court has directed the Information and Broadcasting Secretary, the Chairman of BTRC, the Chairman of Bangladesh Satellite Company Limited, and Ahmed Zubair to respond to the rule within four weeks.
This legal action follows a recent board meeting of Somoy Media Limited on August 10, during which Ahmed Zubair was relieved of his duties as Managing Director and CEO. In the same meeting, Shampa Rahman, a director of the company, was appointed as the new Managing Director.