20 years to clean up the judiciary? Do it now!

But how wrong we could be! That is why when Chief Justice Mohammad Ruhul Amin said the other day that incompetent, low-merited, inept and partisan people had been given appointment as judges in higher courts during the tenure of the last political government, we woke up with a jolt. And before we could digest that he also said that it would take 20 years to repair the damage done to the judiciary in the last five years!

Now, aren't we curious to know about these illustrious sons and daughters of the soil who are sitting on the respected chairs of the judges in the higher courts?

Tap here to add The Daily Star as a trusted source

According to a Daily Star report, there are 68 confirmed judges in the High Court Division and seven in the Appellate Division including the chief justice. And out of the 68, the appointments of 41 were confirmed during the tenure of the immediate past 4-party alliance government.

The same government had given appointment to 45 additional High Court judges during its regime. According to custom, once the chief justice makes a recommendation for confirming an appointment the government usually honours the chief justice's recommendations.

The Daily Star report further elaborates that allegations of partisanship and nepotism in relation to most of the 41 confirmations were quite open, and there was an allegation that some of these judges had been active cadres/leaders of BNP.

At least one additional judge was identified as a BNP lawmaker in the sixth parliament. It has been reported that the past government gave the appointments in four phases, and extended the retirement age for the judges with the intent of placing a retired judge as the chief of the caretaker government.

This was done keeping the ninth parliamentary election in view. And we all know how that ill-conceived plan had boomeranged at the end.

Among the judges given appointment in August 2004, there was a leader of Islami Chhatra Shibir, and shortly before the expiry of their tenure the alliance government confirmed the appointments of the judges. Interestingly enough, the appointment of legendary Faisal Mahmud Faizee was not confirmed by the chief justice.

The law says that once a judge's appointment is confirmed, no authority can remove him or her from the position. The person may step down voluntarily, or a supreme judicial council may be formed to remove the person.

Forming of a supreme judicial council is a lengthy process, and that is possibly one of the reasons why the chief justice said it would take 20 years to repair the judiciary.

So, what can we do about it? Shall we wait for 20 years? Shall we allow the incompetent judges to make a mess of the entire judicial system that has been built brick by brick by competent law experts of the past who commanded respect and authority in society? Or shall we go for evolving a process to expedite the ouster of the party lackeys from the sacred precincts of the courts? Well, it seems that there is a greater consensus in society for the latter. "Get them outa here!"

Action is believed to be already on the cards. Senior lawyers of the Supreme Court said that the partisan judges could be removed through forming a supreme judicial council, and it has been reported by the media that the government has started to collect background information about all the controversial judges who were given appointment, or whose services were confirmed, between 2001 and 2006.

Listen to what some senior lawyers and experts have to say about this: "We believe that the move is an indication that the government is planning to do something to clean the judiciary and to restore its independence."

Well, we all know that the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) has always been vocal against appointment of judges on the basis of their political colour rather than merit.

But ignoring such expert opinions, the government elevated High Court judges to the Appellate Division by superseding senior judges, and also retained judges against whom there were specific allegations of corruption.

We may recall the incident of Judge Syed Shahidur Rahman who was removed by the alliance government through a supreme judicial council for receiving bribes. This particular judge was also appointed by the same 4-party alliance government.

It would be quite relevant to borrow the quote of former Supreme Court judge Ghulam Rabbani from The Daily Star: "Between 1992 and 2002, there had not been any controversy or grievance over the appointments of the judges. The judges were also very capable. When the chief justice himself has noted that there is a problem within the judiciary this means he is telling the truth based on his own experience. Now the duty of the chief justice is to request the president to form a supreme judicial council to clear up the mess."

And here is what senior lawyer T.H. Khan had to say: "There are elements of truth in the statement of the chief justice. If there are incompetent and corrupt persons who were appointed as judges, it's the responsibility of the chief justice to remove them."

Well, the bottom line is: Rid the judiciary of its blemishes and make it an institution worth the name. The judges should be looked up to, and not down upon.

Shahnoor Wahid is Senior Assistant Editor of The Daily Star.