Oikya Front leader Barrister Mainul Hossain was presented in court over a defamation case.
Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Arifa Yasmin Mukta presided over the hearing.
He was taken directly to court from Rangpur Central Jail on Thursday.
The defendant had no lawyers to represent him. As a result, no bail application was submitted to the court.
His was in court for only 15 minutes and was sent back to jail.
The judge scheduled January 10 for complaint formation.
Meanwhile, police did not allow any journalists to enter the court premises.
Police did not give any answers to why there was a ban on journalists in court.
Meanwhile, the plaintiff's lawyer, Advocate PP Abdul Malek, said: "According to the court’s order, Barrister Mainul Hossain was presented before the court today. Although the plaintiff of the case was present, there was no one to apply for bail for the defendant. After the hearing the honorable judge has decided that the complaint needs to be formed on January 10."
He then expressed his anger and condemnation of the entry ban to court premises imposed on journalists .
He said this is a direct violation of law and the police have obstructed the professional rights of journalists.
He said he talked with the Chief Judicial Magistrate and Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate and they said there was no direction given to obstruct journalists in entering court premises. No such order was given to law enforcement agencies.
Metropolitan Police Media Cell Assistant Commissioner Altaf Hossain was contacted for further queries about the incident but he declined to talk about the matter.
However, upon contacting Rangpur Metropolitan Police Additional Assistant Commissioner Kawsar about the situation, he said: "We were instructed by our higher authorities not to let any journalists enter the court premises."
