Judges to resume work Sunday

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The Supreme Court (SC) judges yesterday decided to resume court proceedings from Sunday ending their unprecedented work abstention.

The judges started work abstention from last Tuesday demanding apologies from the SC lawyers and punishment of vandals responsible for the vandalism at the SC premises on November 30 that was triggered by a stay order by the chief justice.

On November 30, minutes before a High Court bench was preparing to announce rulings on three writ petitions filed by 14-party alliance leaders, Chief Justice Syed JR Mudassir Husain stayed the proceedings of the petitions.

The judges’ decision came from a 45-minute meeting of the High Court (HC) Division judges at the judges’ lounge with Chief Justice Syed JR Mudassir Husain in the chair.

“Considering the sufferings of the people seeking justice, the judges will resume court proceedings from December 10,” Supreme Court Registrar Fazlul Karim told the reporters on behalf of the judges. The appellate division judges will also resume their work the same day, added the registrar.

However, he mentioned that the legal proceedings against the criminal incidents at the SC would go on.

The highest court of the country yesterday witnessed another day without court proceedings despite presence of the judges and lawyers.

There were more police than the clients to maintain law and order in the court yesterday as lawyers loyal to both alliances — the four-party and the 14-party — had been demonstrating there pressing their respective demands.

Sammilito Ainjibi Samannay Parishad, lawyers loyal to the 14-party alliance, yesterday demonstrated at the SC, as well as other courts across the country, urging the judges to resume their work.

The Parishad lawyers at a meeting at the SC premises yesterday condemned and demanded withdrawal of sedition charges filed against eminent jurists including Dr Kamal Hossain, Barristers Amir-Ul Islam and Rokanuddin Mahmud.

They also condemned police raids at residences of lawyers and asked the chief adviser to hand over the home ministry responsibilities to an adviser.

Former Dhaka University (DU) vice-chancellor AK Azad Chowdhury, former DU Teachers’ Association (DUTA) president AAMS Arefin Siddique and its present general secretary Dr Akhtaruzzman, Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ) president Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury attended the meeting among others.

Later, the Parishad lawyers brought out a procession and chanted slogans.

Jatiyatabadi Mohila Ainjibi Front, an association of pro-BNP women lawyers, yesterday held a human chain on the SC premises demanding punishment of the ones involved in the November 30 vandalism.

The legal officials of the attorney general’s (AG) office yesterday held a token hunger strike for several hours in protest at the vandalism of the AG’s office the same day.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Supreme Court Ainjibi Sahokary Samity, an association of the SC lawyers’ assistants, yesterday threatened to go for tougher programmes unless their names are withdrawn from the cases filed for the November 30 vandalism by Saturday.

The decision came from an extended meeting of the Samity yesterday. The Samity activists handed over a memorandum to the SC registrar demanding withdrawal of the cases against them and later staged a peaceful sit-in at the SC gate.

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