A total of 83 Bangladeshi eminent citizens have issued a statement seeking bail and unconditional release of Prothom Alo senior reporter Rozina Islam in connection to a case file against her by the Health Ministry.

The statement sought withdrawal of the case, proper investigation of the matter and identification of the culprits who are responsible for the incident.

Condemning the delay in delivering bail to the investigative reporter and the eminent citizens said court's delay in taking decision over bail order of Rozina has triggered aggravation among them.

Protests and demonstrations erupted on local and international levels after arrest of the senior journalist was made based on the 'imaginary' allegations brought by the Health Ministry, the statement said.

This has raised a question mark on the image of the country and the government centering development of freedom of speech, free journalism and democracy in country, the statement added.

The eminent citizens are include: Professor emeritus, Serajul Islam Choudhury, rights activist, Sultana Kamal, Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) Executive Director, Iftekharuzzaman, founder of Gonoshasthaya Kendra, Zafrullah Chowdhury, Supreme Court lawyer, Shahdeen Malik, social activist, Khushi Kabir, photojournalist and social activist, Shahidul Alam, Dhaka University professors Asif Nazrul, Gitiara Nasreen, Samina Luthfa, Tanzimuddin Khan, Jahangirnagar University professor Anu Muhammad, Nasrin Khandakar, Mirza Taslima Sultana.

Rozina Islam was detained for allegedly taking snapshots of an official document at the Secretariat without due permission.

The incident took place on Monday afternoon when Rozina went to the health ministry inside the Secretariat as part of professional duty around 3:30 pm. At one stage, she was locked in a room there and her mobile phone was confiscated.

Hours after detention, the case has been filed against her under the Official Secrets Act.

Health Services Division's (HSD) Deputy Secretary Sibbir Ahmed Osmani filed the case with Shahbagh police station on Monday midnight, said Harunur Rashid, additional deputy commissioner (Ramna Division) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police.

Two more charges were brought against the senior journalist under 379 and 411 sections of the penal code.