Appointment of judges stalled for last15 months

The Appellate Division of Supreme Court has been experiencing a severe shortage of judges, as six out of a total of 11 judges have retired and two others went on leave within last one year.
No new judge was appointed to the apex court during the last 15 months, although around 7,000 cases are now pending with this court, causing sufferings to the litigants, sources at chief justice's office said.
Considering the huge backlog of pending cases at the High Court (HC) Division, Chief Justice ABM Khairul Haque is not taking initiative to appoint judges to the Appellate Division, added sources.
A total of 89 judges of the HC division are dealing with around 3,53,000 cases, which are pending with court and the backlog is increasing gradually.
The chief justice feels that if some of the senior judges of the HC division are picked for the Appellate Division, the rate of disposal of cases in the HC will fall drastically. This would ultimately cause the backlog to grow up even further, stated the sources.
Justice Khairul is now stressing smooth disposal of cases in the HC division, they said, adding he would move to appoint judges to the Appellate Division a few months later, once the backlog at the HC comes down.
The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) on October 26 adopted a resolution expressing annoyance over delay in appointment of judges.
SCBA President Khandker Mahbub Hossain told The Daily Star that the government should immediately promote judges from the HC division to the Appellate Division on the basis of seniority to expedite proceedings of cases pending with the apex court.
If any judge is superseded during the promotion process, the lawyers will protest the move, he added.
Earlier on July 9 last year the president raised the number of posts of judges in the Appellate Division from seven to eleven, since the number of cases in this division was higher than that at present.
Besides, some important cases including Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman murder case and the case involving the fifth amendment to the republic's constitution were pending in the Appellate Division at that time.
Since assumption of power in 2009, the government has appointed 38 judges to the HC.