A legal notice was served on Sarjis Alam, the chief organiser of the northern region of the National Citizen Party (NCP), seeking an unconditional apology for allegedly making derogatory remarks about the High Court on social media.

Supreme Court lawyer Advocate Md Jasim Uddin issued the notice on Saturday (May 24), calling on Sarjis, also one of the coordinators of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement,  to seek an unconditional apology in writing to the Chief Justice via the Registrar General of the Supreme Court. 

The notice also demands that he hold a press conference to apologise to the nation within two hours of receiving the notice.

Failure to comply, the lawyer warned, would result in the filing of a contempt of court petition against him.

Speaking to Banglanews24, Advocate Jasim Uddin confirmed that the notice was sent both by post and electronically via WhatsApp to Sarjis Alam.

According to the notice, the incident is linked to a High Court verdict issued on Thursday, which summarily dismissed a writ petition challenging the Election Commission’s gazette and the election tribunal’s decision declaring Ishraque Hossain as the mayor of Dhaka South City Corporation.

Following the court's decision, Sarjis Alam allegedly posted a critical reaction on his verified Facebook account around 11:49am, which was later cited in media reports. 

The notice claims that the comment disrespected the judiciary and constituted contempt of court.

The judiciary is one of the fundamental pillars of the state, the notice added, and any derogatory or defamatory remarks against it undermine the rule of law and constitutional order.

SMS/