Govt enacted DSA to prevent cybercrime: Law Minister

Law Minister Anisul Huq has said that with the progress of technology internet based crimes have also increased across the country which led the government to enact the Digital Security Act (DSA), UNB reports.

The minister made these remarks while speaking as the chief guest at an exchange meeting with GPs (Government Pleaders) and PPs (Public Prosecutors) at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in the capital on Saturday.

Law and Justice Secretary Golam Sarwar presided over the meeting.

“Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman has mentioned the freedom of the press in the constitution, which is not cited in many democratic countries’ constitution. Bangabandhu has added it as a fundamental right in the constitution and his daughter will not pass any law that would impede freedom of speech or the media,” the minister added.

“It is true that there were some misuses of the Digital Security Act,” he said, adding that earlier it was seen that a journalist would be arrested as soon as there was a case under the Digital Security Act in the police station.

“I also spoke over the issue that no one should be arrested immediately after filing the case. If the court thinks it is a serious crime, then the accused may be arrested,” he added.

The minister said people will lose confidence in the judiciary if they do not get justice in time.

“So we have to minimise the time to solve any case. There is no need for so much time. We have taken steps to increase the number of courts and judges too,” he said.

The Law of Evidence is being updated. Section 155 (4) of this Act is being repealed. Initiatives have been taken to amend NI Act, 1881. Emphasis has also been placed on Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR).

He said many compromising cases have been pending in the civil courts for a long time. If these cases are settled in the ADR system, the backlog of cases will decrease.