SC asks BTRC to decide on ETV licence in 90 days
Staff Correspondent
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court yesterday gave Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) 90 days to dispose of the application of the Ekushey Television (ETV) for licence.Earlier on August 20, the High Court (HC) Division directed the BTRC to dispose of the issue within 30 days. Challenging the HC order, the government attorney filed a leave to appeal petition with the Appellate Division. The government also sought a stay on the HC verdict. But the Appellate Division did not entertain the government petition, though it extended the HC deadline to 90 days from 30 days. Meanwhile, the ETV's lawyer Dr. Kamal Hossain challenged the authority of government attorney to stand in the court for the BTRC, as it is an independent autonomous body. Advocate Abdul Matin Khasru assisted him. The ETV, the first private terrestrial TV channel that broke years of state monopoly in the electronic media, was shut down following a Supreme Court verdict on August 29 last year that declared its licence illegal after 28 months on the air. The government seized the ETV equipment on the heels of the verdict.
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