Power cannot override judiciary

Plaintiff in the judicial separation case, Masdar Hossain, has said that the decision to scrap the ordinance on judge appointments and the Supreme Court Secretariat will not bring positive outcomes for the country.

He made the remarks at an open discussion held at the National Press Club in the capital on Saturday.

Masdar Hossain said that such important issues were being scrapped by the stroke of a pen through the use of power, which, in reality, amounted to trampling on the judiciary.

He further said that if a public opinion survey were conducted at this moment, 99 per cent of people would oppose the government’s decisions.

Referring to victims of enforced disappearance, he said those who once waited for death after being disappeared were now serving as members of parliament, and suggested that they should be consulted in defining enforced disappearance.

Criticising the Ministry of Law’s move to issue show-cause notices to 28 judges, Masdar Hossain questioned the authority under which the law minister sought explanations from them.

He said that when judges had to approach the Supreme Court even for minor administrative needs, it raised serious concerns about the legality of such actions.

He warned that the current administration had been established on the blood and sacrifices of the July movement activists and that betraying their sacrifices would not be appropriate.

Running the state based on the thinking of a handful of individuals would not bring positive results, he added.He also cautioned that the people would one day bring misguided forces back to the right path.

The discussion was organised by Humanity Foundation and Ain O Bichar magazine.

Among others, retired Appellate Division justice Abdul Matin, senior lawyer Barrister Ehsan A Siddiq, Barrister Omar Faruq, lawyer Hasan Tariq Chowdhury, former joint judge Dr Md Sajjad Hossain and July movement leader Arif Sohel also spoke at the event.

Masdar Hossain is widely known in Bangladesh as the plaintiff in the historic judicial separation case.

He has long been active in advocating judicial independence, administrative autonomy for judges and structural reforms in the judiciary.

The process of separating the judiciary from the executive branch in Bangladesh began through the case he filed, which later led to a significant transformation in the state structure.

The verdict in the Government vs Masdar Hossain case is considered a landmark in the history of Bangladesh’s judiciary.

In 1999, the Appellate Division issued a 12-point directive in the case aimed at separating the judiciary from executive control and ensuring independence in the appointment, promotion and administration of judges.

Following the ruling, the judiciary was effectively separated in 2007, marking a major milestone in the country’s constitutional development.