SC stays HC verdict jailing ex-chief judicial magistrate

Staff Reporter :
The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed till November 20 a High Court verdict that sentenced Md Sohel Rana, former chief judicial magistrate of Cumilla, to one month’s imprisonment for committing contempt of court by ignoring an HC stay order on the trial of a case.

He was also fined Tk 5,000 and ordered to surrender before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court of Dhaka in seven days.

Chamber judge of the Appellate Division of the SC Justice M Enayetur Rahim passed the order following a petition filed by Sohel Rana, who has been attached to the law ministry as an additional district and sessions judge a few weeks ago, seeking a stay on the HC verdict.

The apex court chamber judge also sent the stay petition to its full bench for hearing the matter on November 20.

The SC chamber judge stayed the HC verdict on the ground that Sohel Rana offered unconditional apology to the HC, said his lawyer Shah Monjurul Hoque. But the court didn’t accept the apology, he added.

He said there is no legal bar for Sohel Rana to discharge his duties as a judicial officer following the SC chamber judge’s order.

Earlier on the day, a High Court bench sentenced Md Sohel Rana, the former Chief Judicial Magistrate of Cumilla, to one month’s simple imprisonment and fined him Tk 5,000 for committing contempt of court by ignoring its stay order on the trial of a case.