Defamation Law in Bangladesh 2026: Criminal, Civil and Online Remedies

Defamation law Bangladesh: the 2026 position offline and online

Defamation law Bangladesh courts apply in 2026 rests on a statute older than the internet, yet it now does most of the work against online attacks on reputation. Sections 499 to 502 of the Penal Code 1860 still define and punish criminal defamation, the law of tort still allows a civil suit for damages, and since May 2025 defamation is no longer an offence under the cyber security statute. For anyone targeted by a damaging post, article, broadcast or campaign of online abuse, the practical question is which of these routes fits the facts, and how quickly it must be used.

This guide brings the offline and online sides together: the ten exceptions in section 499, the private complaint under section 198 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, civil claims and the one-year limit, what survived the 2025 repeal of cyber speech offences, cyberbullying and image-based abuse, takedown, press defences, and the September 2026 draft that would make digital defamation a crime again.

Summary: Defamation in Bangladesh is both a crime and a civil wrong. A victim can file a private complaint before a magistrate under sections 499 to 502 of the Penal Code, sue for damages within one year of publication, or both. Online defamation is pursued under the same Penal Code provisions, because the Cyber Security Ordinance 2025, re-enacted as the Cyber Security Act 2026, removed defamation from the cyber law. Online sexual harassment, blackmail, revenge pornography and sextortion remain cyber offences under section 25 of that Act.

Key point: The clock for a civil defamation suit runs from publication, not from the date the victim learns of it. The High Court Division has rejected a Tk 50 crore compensation claim over a book published fourteen years before the suit, deciding the point on the plaint alone.

At a glance

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Table of Contents

Defamation law Bangladesh in 2026: three tracks, one set of facts

A single defamatory post can engage three separate bodies of law. The first is criminal defamation under Chapter XXI of the Penal Code, which punishes the person who makes or publishes an imputation intended to harm reputation.[1] The second is the civil wrong of defamation, divided into libel and slander, which allows the victim to claim compensation in a civil court.[5] The third is the special legislation on cyber offences, sexual harassment and pornography, which applies when the attack goes beyond reputation into threats, blackmail, intimate images or abuse of women and children.

These tracks are cumulative. A victim may file a criminal complaint and a civil suit on the same publication, and a campaign mixing false allegations with intimate images may also justify a cyber case. The skill lies in choosing the lead remedy and preserving the others.

What changed in 2025 and 2026

The most important recent change is negative. The Cyber Security Ordinance 2025, gazetted on 21 May 2025, repealed the Cyber Security Act 2023 and omitted its sections 21, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 31 and 34, including the provision on defamatory content, and annulled pending cases under them.[9] Parliament re-enacted the ordinance as the Cyber Security Act 2026, Act No. 81 of 2026, dated 10 April 2026 and deemed to have taken effect on 21 May 2025.[8] Online defamation is therefore prosecuted, again, under the Penal Code. Our analysis of cyber law in Bangladesh traces the legislative history; this guide concentrates on reputation, harassment and remedies.

Criminal defamation under Penal Code sections 499 to 502

Section 499 defines the offence. A person commits defamation if, by words spoken or intended to be read, by signs or by visible representations, he makes or publishes an imputation concerning another person, intending to harm that person's reputation or knowing or having reason to believe that it will do so, except in the cases covered by the exceptions.[1] The elements are therefore an imputation, publication to someone other than the person defamed, an identifiable target, and the required intention or knowledge.

The four explanations

Four explanations sharpen the definition. An imputation about a deceased person can be defamatory if intended to hurt the family. A company, association or group can be defamed. Irony or an alternative still counts. Most importantly, an imputation harms reputation only if it lowers the person's moral or intellectual character, the character of their calling, or their credit, or makes their body appear loathsome or disgraceful.[1] Merely rude abuse is not defamation.

Punishment under sections 500, 501 and 502

Section 500 punishes defamation with simple imprisonment for up to two years, a fine, or both. Section 501 applies the same maximum to printing or engraving matter known or believed to be defamatory, and section 502 to selling printed or engraved material containing such matter.[2] Sentences in practice are usually far below the maximum. In May 2026 the High Court Division upheld the conviction of a vice principal who had published a rejoinder in a local newspaper calling the complainant a fraud and a womaniser, but reduced a six-month sentence to the period already served and the fine from Tk 5,000 to Tk 500.[4]

Who can be liable

The author of a defamatory statement is the primary target, and the editor or publisher does not have to be joined. In the same May 2026 judgment the court held there was no legal requirement to implead the editor or publisher where the accused had written and sent the rejoinder himself.[4] Section 501, by contrast, is narrow. In Tasnova Iqbal v The State, the High Court Division quashed cognizance under section 501 against a woman whose remarks were broadcast on television, because there was no evidence that she had printed or engraved anything, while allowing the section 500 case to proceed.[3] Charging the right section matters.

The ten exceptions: defences to criminal defamation

Section 499 contains ten exceptions, and they are where most contested cases are won or lost.[1] They are not general free-speech defences. Each protects a specific kind of statement made in a specific way, and most require good faith. An accused who relies on an exception should expect to prove the facts that bring the statement within it.

Truth for the public good

The first exception protects an imputation of truth only where the public good requires that it be made or published.[2] Truth alone is therefore not a complete defence to criminal defamation in Bangladesh. A true allegation about a person's private life, published with no public purpose, can still be punished. Truth combined with a genuine public interest, such as exposing fraud, corruption or a danger to the public, is the strongest defence available.

Opinion on public conduct and public questions

The second and third exceptions protect opinions expressed in good faith about the conduct of a public servant in the discharge of public functions, and about the conduct of any person touching a public question, so far as the opinion concerns that conduct. The sixth protects good-faith opinion on the merits of a public performance, such as a book, film or speech, that its author has submitted to public judgment.[2] These exceptions protect comment, not invented facts, and only comment confined to the conduct in issue.

Reports, complaints and protection of interests

The fourth and fifth exceptions cover substantially true reports of court proceedings and good-faith opinion on decided cases. The seventh covers censure by a person with lawful authority. The eighth protects a good-faith accusation to someone with lawful authority over the accused, such as the police or an employer. The ninth and tenth protect good-faith imputations made to protect interests, and cautions given for the public good.[2] Reference letters, internal investigations and complaints to regulators usually fall here, if confined to those who need to know.

Status of the person defamed

Defamation law Bangladesh courts apply has no public-figure doctrine. In Tasnova Iqbal the High Court Division observed that the greater the person, the greater his honour, treating a State Minister's standing as relevant.[3] Critics of public figures must rely on the specific exceptions.

Starting a case: section 198 and the private complaint

Criminal defamation cannot be started by the police on their own initiative. Section 198 of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1898, headed prosecution for breach of contract, defamation and offences against marriage, bars a court from taking cognizance of a Chapter XXI offence except on a complaint by a person aggrieved.[3] The complainant files a petition of complaint before the competent magistrate, is examined on oath, and the magistrate then decides whether to issue process, hold an inquiry or dismiss the complaint. The general mechanics are covered in our guide to filing a criminal case in Bangladesh.

Who counts as a person aggrieved

The person aggrieved is not always the person defamed. In Tasnova Iqbal the High Court Division held that section 198 refers to a person aggrieved, not necessarily the person defamed, and accepted that a son living with his father had standing to complain for himself and for his father.[3] Standing is still a real defence. A stranger who files out of political loyalty, without any personal injury, risks dismissal at the threshold.

Bail, cognizability and compromise

Defamation under the Penal Code is generally non-cognizable and bailable, which means no arrest without a warrant and bail as of right.[2] For writers and journalists there is an additional safeguard. An amendment to the Code passed on 2 February 2011 removed the power to issue an arrest warrant directly against journalists and writers for defamatory writing or speech, and introduced a summons instead.[7] Most defamation cases are resolved without anyone being held in custody, and many end in a compromise recorded before the court.

Discharge and quashing

An accused can seek discharge under section 241A where the charge is groundless, and later ask the High Court Division to quash under section 561A, an extraordinary power. In Tasnova Iqbal the court declined to quash because the discharge remedy had not been used first.[3] Our section 561A quashment practice advises on when the High Court route is realistic and when it is premature. The later stages of trial and appeal are explained in our guide to the criminal case process in Bangladesh.

Civil defamation: suing for damages

Civil defamation is a tort applied on common-law principles. Libel is defamation in permanent form, such as print or an online post; slander is transient, usually spoken words.[3] The claimant must show a defamatory statement, reference to the claimant and publication to a third party. Truth, fair comment and privilege operate as defences on lines similar to the criminal exceptions.

The one-year limitation period

Time is short. Article 24 of the First Schedule to the Limitation Act 1908 gives one year for compensation for libel, running from when the libel is published. Article 25 gives one year for compensation for slander, running from when the words are spoken or, if the words are not actionable in themselves, from when the special damage complained of results.[5] The general two-year period under article 36 for torts not otherwise provided for does not help a defamation claimant.[5]

The High Court Division has enforced the libel period strictly. In a suit by a Member of Parliament over a book listing her father as a Peace Committee member, it held that the year runs from publication, not knowledge. The book was published in February 2005 and the suit filed on 13 February 2019, so the Tk 50 crore compensation prayer was struck out at the threshold under Order VII, rule 11, while a separate declaratory prayer survived.[6] For online content, a fresh posting or a significant republication may raise its own limitation question, but no claimant should rely on that argument when a suit can be filed in time.

Damages and injunctions

No statute caps civil defamation damages; the court assesses compensation on evidence of harm.[2] A claimant may also seek an injunction, though courts are cautious about restraining speech before trial. Headline claims raise court fees and invite challenge, so the sum claimed should reflect provable loss. Our guides to civil suit filing and permanent injunction suits explain the procedure.

Choosing between criminal and civil remedies

The criminal complaint is quicker and cheaper and carries the pressure of a summons, but produces punishment, not compensation. The civil suit can deliver damages and an injunction, but is slower and lost entirely if filed late. Many victims complain first and preserve the civil claim by suing within the year.

Online defamation law Bangladesh after the Cyber Security Act 2026

For most of the last decade, online defamation was prosecuted under cyber legislation rather than the Penal Code. That is no longer so. The Media Reform Commission identified section 29 of the Cyber Security Act 2023 as a criminal libel provision and, in its report of 22 March 2025, recommended abolishing it together with Penal Code sections 499 to 502.[14] Two months later the Cyber Security Ordinance 2025 omitted section 29 with the other speech offences and annulled pending cases under them.[9]

The 2026 Act and what it contains

The Cyber Security Act 2026 repealed and re-enacted the 2025 ordinance and its amending ordinance, treating anything done under them as done under the Act. Its offences, in sections 17 to 30, cover hacking, fraud, cyber terrorism, unauthorised e-transactions, sexual harassment and blackmail in section 25, and hate content in section 26; section 20 has been omitted.[8] None punishes defamation as such.

How online defamation is now prosecuted

A defamatory Facebook post, YouTube video or news portal article is therefore a Penal Code matter: section 499 covers words intended to be read and visible representations.[1] The complaint goes to a magistrate under section 198, not the Cyber Tribunal. Where a post adds threats, fake accounts, sexual content or extortion, a parallel cyber case may lie.

Old cases under repealed cyber provisions

Section 50(5) of the 2026 Act annuls pending cases under sections 21, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29 and 31 of the Digital Security Act 2018. On 21 June 2026 Justice Ahmed Sohel and Justice Fatema Anwar issued a rule asking why it should not be declared ultra vires, on a petition by a woman whose 2020 fake-profile case was dismissed by the Barishal Cyber Tribunal on 30 November 2025.[10] Victims whose old cases were closed should ask whether a fresh complaint under current law is available.

Cyberbullying law Bangladesh: the offences that apply

There is no statute called a cyberbullying law. Cyberbullying law Bangladesh victims rely on is a set of offences across several Acts, chosen by what the bully actually did. Insults alone may be defamation or nothing; threats to release intimate images, fake sexual content or online stalking of a woman engage heavier provisions. This is also where online defamation law Bangladesh and harassment law overlap.

Section 25 of the Cyber Security Act 2026

Section 25 is headed sexual harassment, blackmail or obscene content publication offences and penalties.[8] The Act defines sexual harassment to include repeated requests for nude images and threats to coerce sexual relations, revenge porn as spreading a person's intimate images or videos without consent to harm them, and sextortion as extortion by threatening to publish intimate images for money, benefits or sexual relations.[8] The current maximum under section 25(1) is two years' imprisonment and a fine of Tk 10 lakh, with a heavier penalty under section 25(3) where the victim is a woman or a person under eighteen.[11]

Under section 46, a section 25 offence is cognizable, bailable and compoundable with the court's permission; section 26 hate content, punishable by up to two years, Tk 10 lakh, or both, is non-cognizable and not compoundable.[8] Section 30 lets the Tribunal order compensation to the victim, from the fine or in addition to it.[8]

The Pornography Control Act 2012

Where intimate images are involved, the Pornography Control Act 2012 often carries heavier penalties. Under section 8(2), harming a person's reputation through pornography, extorting money or benefits by threats, or mentally tormenting someone with such material is punishable by up to five years' rigorous imprisonment and a fine of up to Tk 2 lakh; section 8(3) applies the same to supply through the internet or a mobile phone. Recording such material without consent under section 8(1) carries up to seven years, and using a child under section 8(6) up to ten years and Tk 5 lakh.[12]

The Women and Children Repression Prevention Act 2000 and the Penal Code

Harassment that escalates offline falls under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act 2000. Section 10 punishes sexual oppression, including outraging a woman's modesty, with three to ten years' rigorous imprisonment and a fine; section 9A punishes abetting a woman's suicide caused by a wilful act against her honour with five to ten years.[13] Section 509 of the Penal Code, insulting the modesty of a woman, is often charged alongside section 25 for abusive messages and doctored photographs.

False complaints carry their own risk

Section 28 makes it an offence to file a case under the Act without lawful basis, intending to harm the accused, exposing the complainant and anyone behind the filing to the penalty for the underlying offence.[8]

Protection for women and children online

Women and children are the most frequent targets of image-based abuse and sextortion, and the law gives them stronger tools: the heavier penalty under section 25(3), aggravated child offences under the Pornography Control Act, and specialist tribunals in every district under the 2000 Act.[11] [12] [13]

When the police will not register the case

Both regimes give the victim a direct route to the court if the police refuse to act. Under section 40(2) of the Cyber Security Act 2026, a victim whose complaint the police refused may file a written complaint with the Cyber Tribunal on affidavit; if satisfied, the Tribunal directs a police officer to investigate.[8] Section 27(1A) of the 2000 Act gives a similar route to the Nari o Shishu Nirjatan Daman Tribunal, which may order an inquiry to be reported within seven working days.[13] Only the victim, a person the victim authorises in writing, or a law enforcement officer may file a case under the cyber law.[8]

Court guidelines and specialist police support

There is no set of High Court guidelines dedicated to cyberbullying. The High Court Division's sexual harassment guidelines, made in public interest litigation by the Bangladesh National Women Lawyers' Association, treat harassment by e-mail, SMS and telephone, and photographs used to blackmail, as sexual harassment that workplaces and educational institutions must address. Bangladesh Police also runs a Police Cyber Support for Women unit; its role is set out in our cyber law guide.

Reporting, evidence preservation and takedown

Online cases are won on evidence captured in the first hours, before abusers delete posts or deactivate fake profiles.

Preserve the evidence first

Capture full-screen screenshots showing the content, date, account name and profile URL, and copy the link to each post. Download videos, record who shared or commented, and keep the original device unedited. In serious cases use a digital forensic laboratory; the Cyber Security Act 2026 provides for one and addresses evidentiary value.[8]

Takedown under section 8

Section 8 lets the National Cyber Security Agency, and law enforcement through it, remove or block content or ask the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission to do so, on grounds of cyber security, national security or public order, hate speech likely to incite violence, or content instructing crime. The Tribunal must approve within three days or the content is restored, and blocked content must be published.[8]

Defamation is not a ground under section 8, so victims of defamatory posts rely on platform reporting, a lawyer's notice and, where necessary, a civil injunction. In section 25 cases, Tribunal orders are passed by the regulator to the technology company.[8]

A practical sequence for victims

The sequence below front-loads evidence and limitation, because both are lost by delay.

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Press and journalist defences

The exceptions in section 499 are, in substance, a code of responsible journalism: true reporting in the public interest, opinion on officials' public conduct, fair court reports and reviews are protected if made in good faith.[2] Verification is the practical test of good faith. In Tasnova Iqbal, the television channel's staff were discharged at the investigation stage after it emerged that the channel had tried to verify the report before airing it in good faith.[3]

Procedural protection

The 2011 summons requirement remains the press's key procedural protection.[7] Because the editor need not be impleaded, contributors and op-ed writers carry personal risk.[4] Where complaints over one report multiply across districts, the High Court Division can be asked to intervene; our constitutional and writ litigation team acts in those applications.

Reform proposals

The Media Reform Commission recommended in March 2025 that criminal libel be abolished altogether, including Penal Code sections 499 to 502, and that libel complaints be handed to a proposed National Media Commission.[14] That recommendation has not been implemented. The direction of travel in late 2026 is, if anything, the other way, as the draft cyber amendment shows.

2025 to 2026 developments and what to watch

Eighteen months have reshaped defamation law Bangladesh practitioners work with: the cyber law shed its speech offences in May 2025 and was re-enacted in April 2026; in May 2026 the High Court Division confirmed newspaper defamation as a live offence; and in June 2026 it issued a rule on annulled cyber cases.[9] [8] [4] [10]

The September 2026 draft amendment

The most significant pending change is a draft amendment to the Cyber Security Act 2026 published in September 2026. It would add defamation, humiliation and bullying to section 25(1), raise the maximum penalty from two years and Tk 10 lakh to five years and Tk 20 lakh, and allow up to ten years or Tk 40 lakh where the victim is a woman or a person under eighteen. Its definition of person would extend to companies and other legal entities, it contains no express exemption for parody, satire or cartoons, and it would allow some offences to be tried by mobile courts.[11]

If enacted, online defamation would again carry heavier penalties than the same words in print. Rights groups have demanded withdrawal, and the draft remained under consultation at the date of this guide.[11] Platform implications are covered in our guide to cyber law compliance in Bangladesh.

Mistakes to avoid under defamation law Bangladesh courts apply

Most failed defamation cases fail for avoidable reasons. These are the ones we see most often.

For victims

Waiting more than a year to sue, assuming time runs from discovery, is the most expensive mistake.[6] Filing under a repealed cyber provision, or asking police to register a case only a magistrate can take, wastes months. Reporting content before capturing it destroys evidence. Treating every insult as defamation ignores the need to show lowered standing.[1]

For those accused

Ignoring a summons, or going to the High Court before seeking discharge, weakens the defence.[3] Relying on truth without public good misreads the first exception. A prompt, carefully worded correction often secures a compromise faster than argument, while repeating the allegation in a reply creates a fresh publication.

TRW advises complainants, accused persons, publishers and companies on criminal complaints, civil claims, cyber cases and takedowns. Speak to our criminal quashment team or contact TRW to review your position before the limitation period runs.

Frequently asked questions

Is defamation a crime in Bangladesh?

Yes. Sections 499 to 502 of the Penal Code 1860 make defamation, and printing or selling defamatory matter, punishable with simple imprisonment for up to two years, a fine, or both.[1] [2]

Is online defamation still an offence under the cyber law?

No. The Cyber Security Ordinance 2025 omitted the defamation provision of the 2023 Act, and the Cyber Security Act 2026 that replaced it contains no defamation offence. Online defamation is prosecuted under the Penal Code.[9] [8]

Can the police file a defamation case?

No. Under section 198 of the Code of Criminal Procedure a court may take cognizance of defamation only on a complaint by a person aggrieved, filed before a magistrate.[3]

Is truth a defence to defamation in Bangladesh?

Only partly. Under the first exception to section 499, a true imputation is protected only where the public good requires it to be made or published.[2]

How long do I have to sue for defamation?

One year. Article 24 of the Limitation Act 1908 runs from publication of a libel and article 25 from when slanderous words are spoken or special damage results. Time does not run from when you learn of it.[5] [6]

Can a journalist be arrested immediately for a defamatory report?

Not directly. A 2011 amendment to the Code of Criminal Procedure replaced the power to issue an immediate arrest warrant against journalists and writers for defamatory writing with a summons.[7]

What law applies if someone posts my intimate images?

Section 25 of the Cyber Security Act 2026 covers revenge porn and sextortion, and section 8 of the Pornography Control Act 2012 punishes using such material to harm reputation or extort, with up to five years' rigorous imprisonment.[8] [12]

What can I do if the police refuse my cyber harassment complaint?

File a written complaint on affidavit with the Cyber Tribunal under section 40(2) of the Cyber Security Act 2026, which can direct the police to investigate.[8]

Can BTRC remove a defamatory post?

Not on defamation grounds under section 8 of the Cyber Security Act 2026, which is limited to security, public order, hate speech and criminal content, with Tribunal approval within three days. Victims usually rely on platform reporting and civil injunctions.[8]

Will defamation return to the cyber law?

Possibly. A draft amendment published in September 2026 would add defamation, humiliation and bullying to section 25 with up to five years' imprisonment and a Tk 20 lakh fine. It was still a draft as at October 2026.[11]