Staff Correspondent

A Dhaka magistrate asked authorities Thursday to free Arifur Rahman, a former cartoonist of Bangla-language daily Prothom Alo who faces charges of 'hurting religious sentiment', lawyers said.

Magistrate Mosammat Ismat Ara made the order in the presence of the accused, after the plaintiff in the case had repeatedly failed to appear in court. The magistrate, however, did not specify any timeframe for his release.

The latest court order came approximately two months after the High Court declared Arif's detention illegal. The cartoonist's arrest and detention since last September has also earned criticism from local and international rights groups.

Plaintiff Md Jane Alam, also the officer-in-charge of Tejgaon Police Station, has not appeared before the magistrate's court since the end of November, 2007.

Tejgaon police sub inspector Md Abdur Rouf submitted a report to the court Thursday in which he mentioned that the plaintiff has been in East Timor since Nov 28 and for that cause had failed to appear in court. The counsels for the plaintiff were also absent in court Thursday.

The magistrate said: "The plaintiff has not appeared in court despite repeated notices to probe the charges against the accused." "After reviewing an appeal by the defendant for his release the court thinks his (Arif's) plea can be approved."

Security officials arrested Arif on Sept 18 after hard-line Islamic groups protested against one of his cartoons that they claimed mocked the Prophet Muhammad.

Authorities charged the young cartoonist with "hurting the religious sentiments of the people" and ordered 30 days' detention. Arif's detention was later extended by three months.

The government confiscated all copies of the now-defunct satire magazine of Prothom Alo titled Alpin in which the cartoon was printed.

Amid a protest by Islamic groups, Prothom Alo's editor and publisher apologised for printing the cartoon, and fired the cartoonist. On Feb 4, the High Court ruled Arif's detention illegal and ordered his immediate release. In January, global human rights watchdog Amnesty International demanded Arif's release, terming him "a prisoner of conscience".

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