Ongoing Enquiry: 3 HC judges kept away from judiciary for over 3 years
Three High Court judges out of 95 have been excluded from judicial functions for over three years in the wake of an enquiry against them.
Neither the Supreme Court administration nor the government would disclose the judges' current status, the allegations against them, or who is conducting the probe and when will it be finished.
The Daily Star found the names of the judges but is refraining from publishing them on ethical grounds.
Two highly-placed sources in the SC said in August 2019, then chief justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, in consultation with the president, asked the three HC judges to refrain from judicial activities, following allegations of "irregularities in disposing of some cases".
The whole matter may be resolved after the Appellate Division of the SC disposes of a review petition, which has been filed against its verdict that scrapped the 16th amendment to the constitution.
The amendment empowers the parliament, instead of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC), to remove SC judges for incapacity or misconduct, according to the sources.
Comprising the chief justice and two senior judges of the Appellate Division, SJC inquires into allegations of judges' misconduct and recommends the president for the next course of action.
If the apex court rejects the review petition, SJC will deal with the removal of judges, otherwise the parliament will deal with the matter.
Hearing on the petition is yet to take place and no date has been fixed.
More than five years have passed since the Appellate Division decided to restore the SJC, as laid out in Article 96 of the constitution, through the verdict of the 16th amendment case.
The government is yet to comply with the verdict by restoring SJC's provision in the constitution. Instead, it filed a petition with the apex court on December 24, 2017, seeking a review of the verdict.
Contacted, Law Minister Anisul Huq told this correspondent that the government has nothing to do about the matter centring the three judges, as it is an issue of the judiciary, which is independent.
Supreme Court Registrar General in Charge Md Golam Rabbani declined to comment on this issue.
Advocate Khurshid Alam Khan, an SC lawyer and editor of Dhaka Law Reports, told this correspondent that names of the three judges are not included in the daily cause-list of the HC, and therefore, they cannot perform judicial activities.
However, they are getting all relevant benefits, including salaries and transport costs, and are using the SC flag on their cars, he said.
Khurshid, also chief counsel for the Anti-Corruption Commission, termed the move of excluding them as unprecedented. "I've never seen such a situation in my 30 years of profession."
The judges were asked to refrain from judicial activities on August 22, 2019.
After they were informed, the judges sought leave from the authorities concerned, SC Spokesperson Mohammad Saifur Rahman said in a press statement on that day, without mentioning any reasons.
The statement also did not disclose the names of the judges and why authorities are conducting the inquiry.
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