High Court grants bail to Jhumon Das 

The High Court today granted one year bail to Jhumon Das Apon, who was arrested in a case under the Digital Security Act of Sunamganj for criticising Hefajat-e-Islam leader Mamunul Haque on Facebook.

The virtual High Court bench of Justice Mostafa Zaman Islam and Justice KM Zahid Sarwar Kajal passed the order.

Earlier, the HC set 23 September to pass its order on the bail plea filed by Jhumon Das.

On 15 March, Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh arranged a rally named 'Shan-e-Risalat Sammelan' in Sunamganj's Dirai upazila where its former Ameer Junaid Babunagari and joint secretary general Manunul Haque delivered sermons. 

Later, Jhumon Das posted a status on Facebook opining that Mamunul Haque's speech was disruptive to communal harmony, this was propagated as a derogatory comment against the Hefazat, and that led to mayhem in Noagaon village of Shalla upazila on 17 March.

During the mayhem, miscreants vandalised and looted about 90 Hindu houses.

Police detained Jhumon on 16 March to avoid a possible attack on the village, but the attempt went in vain. They showed Jhumon (25) arrested under section 54 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) and produced him before a Sunamganj court on 17 March that later sent him to jail.

He has been in jail ever since.

The incident caused a stir across the country.  Local Union Parishad Chairman Bakul Majumder and police filed two separate cases with Shalla Police Station.

Thirty people were arrested in the next two days after the attack.

Later on 19 March, the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) arrested Shahidul Islam, the mastermind of the attack.

Jhumon Das filed bail petitions in the trial court seven times and filed a bail petition to the High Court. Following the rejection of bail pleas multiple times, he filed a fresh plea seeking bail from the High court, says the petitioner's lawyer.

Since Jhumon's arrest, various political, social and rights organisations have been demanding his release from jail.

Jhumon Das's wife along with their one-year-old child joined different programmes organised by various organisations in the city, demanding his release.