Staff Reporter :Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury of Gonoshasthaya Kendra has been summoned again on charge of contempt of court. The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT)-2 on Sunday asked Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury to appear before the tribunal by July 22 to explain why the charge of contempt of court should not be brought against him forterming three judges as ‘mentally sick’. A three-member bench of the ICT-2, headed by its Chairman Justice Obaidul Hasan, passed the order in response to a petition filed by three freedom fighters and two organisers of Shahbagh Gonojagoron Mancha. Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra’s artist Manoranjan Ghosal, freedom fighters Sheikh Nazrul Islam and Ali Asgar, and convener of a faction of Gonojagoron Mancha Kamal Pasha Chowdhury and its activist FF Shaheen on July 6 filed the petition. The petitioners brought the charge of contempt against the founder of Gonoshasthaya Kendra for terming three judges of the ICT-2 as ‘mentally sick’.Earlier on June 10, the ICT-2 sentenced Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury, one of the 23 noted citizens who published a statement over the conviction of Dhaka-based British journalist David Bergman, one-hour jail and fined Tk 5,000 for contempt of court, acquitting 22 others. The court asked him to pay the fine in seven days and in default, he will have to suffer one month’s jail. Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury served one-hour imprisonment on the dock, but he later declined to pay the fine.However, prior to that, Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury argued and ‘misbehaved’ with the judges and said, ‘You (tribunal judges) misused your power’. After serving the sentence, he also termed the tribunal judges as ‘mentally sick’. Earlier on June 18, the tribunal issued an arrest warrant against Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury, as he failed to pay a fine of Tk. 5,000 by June 17 as per the tribunal’s pervious order. The tribunal on June 21 withdrew the arrest warrant following an order of the Supreme Court. On June 16, the Appellate Division of the apex court withheld the judgment of the ICT-2 for fining Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury for contempt of court after hearing a petition by him against the ICT-2 judgment.
