A Dhaka court on Sunday took cognisance of a case filed against the editor and publisher of online media outlet Face the People, Saifur Sagor, and its reporter, Mohammad Yousuf, on charges of extortion and defamation.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Hasibuzzaman took cognisance of the case and directed the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) to submit its report by 10 August.
Earlier in the day, Md Kamruzzaman, chief executive officer of Mastul Foundation, filed the lawsuit application. The court recorded the complainant’s statement and kept the order pending. Later, the court passed the order, the complainant’s lawyer Azad Rahman said.
According to the complaint, the accused came to the Mastul Foundation’s office for publishing a report and demanded a total of Tk35,000 for publishing reports in favour of the foundation.
The complaint also claimed that the accused demanded Tk50,000 in monthly extortion, which the foundation refused to pay. The accused then allegedly threatened and intimidated the foundation, warning that they would damage the organisation’s reputation.
The accused allegedly later published a news report on 28 June that damaged the Mastul Foundation’s reputation, causing defamation worth Tk20 crore, the complaint claimed.
