Separate Secretariat: Law minister rejects SCBA demand

Law Minister Anisul Huq has rejected the Supreme Court Bar Association's demand for setting up a separate secretariat for the judiciary.

In the context of Bangladesh, establishing a separate secretariat for the judiciary is “an unrealistic idea”, the minister said yesterday.

He was talking to reporters after attending a programme for the district and sessions judges at the Judicial Administrative Training Institute in the capital.

On January 4, the SCBA, dominated by pro-BNP lawyers, demanded that the government amend the disciplinary rules for lower court judges for incorporating a provision for setting up an independent secretariat for the judiciary.

Yesterday, the law minister said there is no separate secretariat for the judiciary in any country in the world.

Replying to a question, he said the government issued the gazette notification on the disciplinary rules for lower court judges, following all the legal procedures.

On December 11 last year, the law ministry issued the notification, keeping the president's authority over the conduct of lower court judges.

On January 3, the SC accepted the disciplinary rules, saying those will uphold the supremacy of the apex court, and it has not lost its powers over the subordinate courts because of those.

The government had sought time from the SC on 28 occasions since May 2015 for issuing the notification.

In reply to another query, Anisul said the government wants the SC to hear and dispose of the review petition against its verdict, which scrapped the 16th amendment to the constitution, so that the issue is resolved quickly.

The amendment had empowered parliament to remove SC judges for incapacity or misconduct.