No bar for Channel 1 to broadcast

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Monday stayed the High Court verdict that upheld the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) decision to ban its frequency allocation.

Through this order, the Appellate Division cleared the way for Channel 1, a private television channel, to resume its broadcasting.

A four-member bench of the Appellate Division, led by senior Justice Ashfaqul Islam, issued the order.

Senior lawyer Barrister Md Ruhul Quddus Kazal, Polash Chandra Roy, Kazi Akhtar Hossain, Mohammad Masum Billah and Maruf Ibrahim Akash appeared for Channel 1.

Adv Masum Billah said, “The court accepted the petition filed on behalf of Channel 1. Now, there is no legal bar for Channel 1 to get its frequency and to resume its functions.”

On January 23 this year, Channel 1 allowed to file an appeal after nearly 16 years.

On April 27, 2010, the BTRC stopped allocating frequency to Channel 1.

Later, the channel authorities filed a writ petition with the HC challenging the BTRC decision, but the HC rejected the petition.