Dhaka, Sep 23 (V7N)— The High Court has suspended the government's decision that halted the broadcast of CSB News, a private news-based television channel, nearly 17 years ago. As a result, there is now no legal barrier preventing the channel from resuming its broadcast, according to lawyer Barrister Mahbub Uddin Khokon, who represented the case.
The court issued the ruling on Monday, following a supplementary application submitted by Fayyaz Quader, the son of the late BNP leader Salahuddin Quader Chowdhury. The High Court bench of Justice Kamrul Hossain Molla and Justice Kazi Zeenat Haque presided over the hearing.
CSB News initially launched experimentally on March 24, 2007, and began full commercial broadcasts on April 9 of the same year. However, on September 6, 2007, the channel was forced off air by the caretaker government at the time.
In 2008, Fazlul Quader Chowdhury, the managing director of CSB News, challenged the legality of the government's letter that ordered the closure of the channel. The High Court issued a ruling in February 2009, but no further hearings occurred until this latest development.
Fayyaz Quader expressed optimism about the channel's revival, despite acknowledging that their equipment had become outdated due to the prolonged shutdown. "Technology has changed, but we believe we can resume broadcasting within a few months," he said.
END/MSS/AJ
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