Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) on Sunday reminded amarblog.com it has legal powers to impose fine or take actions against anyone if it is not provided with information.
The telecom watchdog clarified its legal authorities in a media statement, two days after the blog refused to provide it with information it had earlier sought.
BTRC on Thursday sent a letter to amarblog.com asking for information about six of its bloggers. But amarblog.com refused to do so and talked about providing those bloggers with legal assistance.
”As per Bangladesh Telecommunication Control Act, BTRC can ask for information from anyone having telecommunication license or any Internet user to ensure proper usage of information technology,” BTRC said in the statement.
It also said according to law, not providing it with the sought information was a punishable crime.
The government has already formed a committee in wake of the recent allegations against some blogs and Facebook pages that they were hurting people’s religious feeling misusing social networking sites. The committee will recommend taking actions against those involved in such acts.
On Feb 20, BTRC closed 12 blogs and Facebook pages including ‘Sonar Bangla’ and ‘Basher Kella’ reportedly run by people tied to Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing over last few days.
The closure by the BTRC’s Computer Security Incident Response Team came as those blogs and pages had been accused of spreading hatred and hurting religious sentiment of the people.
The BTRC formed the security response team on Jan 25 last year and launched a special drive to thwart cyber crimes to ensure national security.
The team started receiving complaints and suggestions through email: contact@csirt.gov.bd to thwart cyber crime from Apr 22 the same year.
The government on May 29, 2010 temporarily blocked access to Facebook following the arrest of a youth for uploading satiric images of some leading politicians including the Prime Minister and leader of the opposition.
Source: bdnews24
