Dhaka, March 31 -- The controversial Digital Security Act, or DSA, which human rights advocates have long criticised for its purposefully broad application and ambiguous language intended to silence dissent, is once more at the centre of the uproar caused by the death in custody of a government employee and the dubious arrest of a journalist for a major Bangladeshi newspaper.

Both the government staff member and the journalist were sued under the law.

Several domestic and international rights organisations reiterated their opposition to the law on Thursday, saying the law is nothing but "a weapon to muzzle voices from exercising freedom of expression."

The government shored up its support again for the law, saying that since its enactm...