HC to pass order on Asif Mahmud’s writ against ACC briefings on 11 November

The High Court has concluded hearings on a writ petition filed by former interim government adviser Asif Mahmud Sajib Bhuiyan challenging the legality of the Anti-Corruption Commission’s (ACC) public statements claiming “prima facie truth” in corruption allegations at the start of an inquiry.

The court fixed 11 November for its order after a bench of Justice Md Bashir Ullah and Justice Md Hamidur Rahman heard the petition today (2 November). Barrister Md Yusuf Ali and Advocate Zahirul Islam Musa appeared for the petitioner.

Asif Mahmud, former adviser and spokesperson for the National Citizen Party (NCP), filed the writ in September, seeking to prevent the ACC from making potentially defamatory statements to the media about matters under investigation.

The petition seeks to declare the commission’s press briefings on 2 and 13 September illegal and beyond its legal authority. It also asks the court to bar the ACC from briefing the media on matters under investigation or pending before a court and direct it to issue formal retractions with the same prominence as the original statements.

Registered as Writ Petition No 13885/2026 under Article 102 of the Constitution, the case names the ACC chairman, its deputy director (public relations) and assistant director (public relations) as respondents.

On 29 September, a vacation bench removed the petition from its cause list. It was placed for a fresh hearing after the court vacation.

Background to the writ

The writ challenges two ACC press briefings, held on 2 and 13 September, in which officials publicly discussed allegations against Asif before the inquiry was complete. At a 2 September briefing, an ACC deputy director said a preliminary inquiry had found “prima facie truth” in allegations of irregularities involving Asif and others.

The petition argues that the ACC Act does not allow such a finding at the outset of an inquiry. On 9 September, ACC Secretary said the statement was a “slip of the tongue”, and an official also acknowledged the mistake in a journalists’ WhatsApp group. However, the commission did not issue a formal retraction. After sending a legal notice on 10 September, Asif filed the writ.

At a briefing on 13 September, an assistant director from the ACC made additional allegations concerning various issues, including the appointment of an administrator for the Dhaka North City Corporation, postings for deputy commissioners, matters related to WASA and LGED, development project tenders, and instances of overseas money laundering.

Asif denies allegations, alleges political motive

Asif has denied the allegations, describing them as baseless and false. He argued that he could not have influenced the promotion of 150 assistant youth development officers, as the promotions took effect on 11 May 2026, nearly five months after he resigned on 11 December 2025.

The petition also says his additional responsibility in the Youth and Sports Ministry was withdrawn following a ruling by the Administrative Appellate Tribunal and a subsequent ministry order.

Asif alleges the briefings were intended to damage his reputation and amounted to a “media trial”, particularly after he announced his candidacy for Dhaka North mayor. He argues that the statements violated his constitutional right to protection of law under Article 31 and the Right to Information Disclosure Policy 2011.