Musician Asif gets bail

Popular musician, Asif Akbar, has secured bail in a case filed by contemporary lyricist, composer, and singer, Shafiq Tuhin— under the Information and Communication Technology Act.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Keshab Roy Chowdhury passed the order on Monday, when Asif’s lawyer filed a bail petition with the court.

Asif was detained from his studio in the FDC area in Dhaka on June 6.  

According to the first information report (FIR), Tuhin, through an investigative report aired by a private television channel on June 1, had learned that Asif breached his trust by selling around 617 songs that Tuhin claims belong to him and many other musicians. 

Also Read:  Musician Asif Akbar arrested for piracy under ICT act, denied bail

Asif reportedly did not have the intellectual property rights of the songs he sold through as hard copies and digital downloads—, and he did not secure the content-owners’ permission from original owners of the sold contentbefore selling their work. 

Learning this information, Tuhin posted a status on his Facebook page, mentioning that his songs were sold without his permission. 

Asif reportedly used his own Facebook account to post threatening replies to Tuhin.

Later, Asif made a Facebook live video for his followers, allegedly making derogatory comments against Tuhin, and urging his fans to “resist him wherever he is found.”

In the FIR, Tuhin further mentioned that several fans of Asif have threatened him on social media.