Case Filed Against Prothom Alo Editor for Allegedly Hurting Religious Sentiments

A case has been filed in Dhaka against Matiur Rahman, editor of Bangladesh’s leading newspaper 'Dainik Prothom Alo', and another individual for allegedly "hurting religious sentiments."

On Thursday, Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Md. Saifuzzaman’s court accepted the case and directed the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to investigate the allegations and submit a report by October 7, as confirmed by the court’s bench assistant, Md. Imran Hossain.

The case was initiated on April 28 by Dhaka-based businessman Nazrul Islam. The complaint alleges that on March 30, 'Prothom Alo' published a satirical cartoon titled “Eid Mubarak” on the front page, spanning the second, third, and fourth columns. The cartoon, featuring an image of a dog, is accused of mocking Islam’s holy festival of Eid, thereby insulting its sanctity and deeply offending the religious sentiments of the Muslim community. The plaintiff claims this was a deliberate and calculated act to demean Eid-ul-Fitr, describing it as a malicious attempt to disrespect a significant religious festival.

Notably, in 2007, Matiur Rahman faced a similar case over a cartoon published in the 431st issue of Prothom Alo’s humor magazine 'Alpin' on September 17. The cartoonist, Arifur Rahman, was arrested, and Matiur Rahman issued a public apology in the newspaper. Under pressure from the Muslim community, he also performed “tawba” (repentance) by holding hands with Maulana Ubaidul Haque, the then-khatib of Baitul Mukarram Mosque.