<div style="text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><b>The High Court has banned the streaming of “Faraaz” – an Indian film based on the 2016 terrorist attack at the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka’s Gulshan – on online platforms in Bangladesh.</b></span><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The HC bench of Justice Md Khasruzzaman and Justice Md Iqbal Kabir today passed the order after hearing a writ petition filed against the screening of the movie directed by Hansal Mehta.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Barrister Rokan Uddin Mahmud and the lawyer Ahsanul Karim stood for the petitioner at the court. Deputy Attorney General Bipul Bagmar represented the state.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The petition was filed against the streaming of the film online and screening at movie theatres by Ruba Ahmed, mother of Abinta Kabir who was one of the victims of the attack.</div><div style="text-align: justify; "><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“As the film is yet to be approved by the Censor Board, today’s directive does not mention a ban on screening in cinema halls,” the petitioner’s lawyer Ahsanul Karim told UNB.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Produced by T-Series and Benaras Media Works, “Faraaz” is loosely based on the terrorist attack at Holey Artisan Bakery on July 1, 2016. At least 22 people, including 17 foreign nationals, were killed in the attack. Faraaz Ayaaz Hossain and Abinta Kabir were among the victims alongside Tarishi Jain and Ishrat Akhond.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Two police officers were also killed in the attack.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Since the trailer of Hansal Mehta’s much-talked-about Bollywood film “Faraaz” was released, Ruba Ahmed took to the media to express her objections to releasing and promoting the film in Bangladesh.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ahmed, alongside the mother of Tarishi Jain, an Indian national who was killed in the attack, has also fought a legal battle at Delhi High Court to stop the release of “Faraaz”. However, the Indian court refused to block the film which was released in theatres across India on February 3. UNB</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>