The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has stayed a High Court order that granted bail to Marzia Akhter alias Shila, who was arrested in a case filed on the charge of harassing a woman at Narsingdi railway station for dress she was wearing.
Chamber judge of the Appellate Division Justice M Enayetur Rahim issued the stay order on Sunday (August 21) following a petition filed by the state challenging the HC bail order.
The apex court chamber judge also sent the state’s petition to its full bench for hearing the matter on August 29.
Attorney General AM Amin Uddin appeared for the state while lawyers Zahurul Islam and Md Kamal Hossain represented Marzia during hearing of the petition.
On August 16, the HC bench of Justice Sheikh Md Zakir Hossain and Justice AKM Zahirul Huq granted six months’ anticipatory bail to Marzia in the case.
Indicating the girl’s dress, the HC bench on that day in the hearing questioned whether anyone wearing such dress can go to the railway station in a civilised country?
The HC bench said, “The girl was in an objectionable state in the platform, which is seen in the CD. Is it your rights? Is it your rights to dress?”
On May 18, a female student of a private university in Dhaka was subjected to assault and abusive words for dress she was wearing at Narsingdi railway station. Two of her friends also were assaulted during the incident that went viral on social media where netizens vented anger over the harassment of the woman by another woman.
Later, Narsingdi railway police outpost filed a case with the Bhairab railway police station under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act.
Police arrested Marzia on May 30 in connection with the case. Failing to get bail at the lower court, Marzia appealed at the High Court.
