The High Court has suggested the government to keep the provision of death penalty or life imprisonment in law as the maximum penalty for insulting Allah, the Holy Prophet (PBUH), Islam and other religions.
The HC bench of Justice Md Rezaul Hasan and Justice Fahmida Quader made the suggestion of capital punishment in the law for hurting religious sentiment during a case hearing on Tuesday (March 12).
Deputy Attorney General AKM Amin Uddin Manik confirmed the matter.
The higher court has made observation over the Cyber Security Act, 2023 in this regard. The court has given the opinion that the maximum penalty of death sentence or life imprisonment with non-bailable clause in the case of blaspheming the Holy Quran and the holy Prophet can be kept in the law.
The court said the earlier the law had a non-bailable clause. In the existing law, hurting religious sentiment is a bailable clause. For this reason, the trend of such crime is increasing in the country day by day.
Selim Khan of Bheramara upazila in Kusthia made ugly comments on Facebook about Prophet Muhammad (SM). In the ruling hearing in that case, the High Court
found sufficient evidence against Nafisa Chowdhury, who posted negative posts about the Holy Prophet on Facebook.
As the section is bailable, later the High Court made a new observation by ordering the investigation officer (IO) and senior officials through the supplementary charge sheet.
Earlier, the demand for capital punishment to those involved in hurting religious sentiment was raised by religious groups man times. In 2023, Supreme Court lawyer JR Khan Robin served a legal notice on behalf of his client Ariful Rahman, editor of the Dainik Al Ihsan and also a follower of Rajarbagh Darbar Shareef, to the government where it was sought to amend the existing laws for ensuring capital punishment for hurting religious sentiment and insulting Prophet Muhammad (SM).
The lawyer in the legal notice had said that the Constitution of the country ensured freedom of religion. As violation of any Article of the Constitution is a crime tantamount to sedition, a two-year or a five-year punishment prescribed by the penal code and the Digital Security Act, 2018 (now defunct) is not enough to stop the crimes of insulting the Prophet and hurting religious sentiment.
In 2013, Hefazat-e-Islam had held protests in the capital and other parts of the country to demand that the government introduce an anti-blasphemy law that would include the death penalty for those who insult Islam.
