It is a shame to even contemplate a person whose LLB mark sheet was tampered with, to have held a judge's post in the highest judiciary of the country. We feel ashamed; we wonder whether those who appointed him as a judge of the high court and insisted on his confirmation will ever feel remorse for the indelible blot they have caused to be cast upon the highest judiciary.

Like politicisation of all the other organs of the government the judiciary was also not spared the despicable act indulged in by the immediate past government.

The fact that the convention of seeking the advice of the highest judiciary in the appointment of judges to the high court seems to have been all but done away with and the role of the chief justice (CJ) made nothing more than mere perfunctory as far as appointment of judges are concerned. Time and again the recommendations of CJ were ignored by the government of the day and judges were appointed on the whims of the ruling party, especially of Khaleda Zia.

We understand the deference that is shown by the judiciary to the elected executive and that is not a bad thing. But then a line must be drawn by it to ensure that such deference does not become the cause of its embarrassment and denigrates its standing and degrades its prestige.

Faizee's episode has been a blot in the face of the judiciary that can only be removed by the gentleman in question relinquishing his responsibility on his own. This should be followed by the new CJ taking an initiative to cleanse the higher judiciary and restore its glory and dignity to the full.