Ashutosh Sarkar

Govt will further scrutinise ordinances issued by interim govt to ensure judicial independence, he tells The Daily Star

For the family of ex-BDR member Mollah Sayeed Hossain, the wait for his release is likely to get longer.

Over the past year, the judiciary has seen several key reforms, including the establishment of the Supreme Court Secretariat aimed at safeguarding its autonomy, but no progress has been made in reducing the case backlog.

With Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed set to retire on December 27, the absence of a specific constitutional provision has led to speculation about who will succeed him.

Although 28 years have passed since the signing of the Chattogram Hill Tracts Peace Accord, uncertainty continues over resolving the legal disputes involving the CHT regional council.

The government yesterday issued an ordinance to establish the long-desired Supreme Court secretariat with a view to ensuring full independence of the judiciary.

Chief justice to have overall control, financial authority

The non-party caretaker government system has returned to Bangladesh’s constitution, but apparently not for the national polls slated for early February.

Some legal experts have strongly opposed the National Consensus Commission’s recommendation that constitutional reforms in the July charter be automatically incorporated into the constitution if these are not implemented within a 270-day timeframe.

The government-formed task force may again fail to submit its full-fledged probe report to the High Court in connection with the murders of journalists Sagar Sarwar and Meherun Runi.

Thirteen years have passed since the night of horror at Ramu in Cox’s Bazar, when zealots set ablaze centuries-old Buddhist temples, looted homes and spread fear among the minority community.

The backlog of pending cases, including appeals in some sensational murder trials, is growing at the Appellate Division (AD) of the Supreme Court due to the slow pace of hearings and disposals.

Systemic barriers discourage young women from pursuing judicial careers, legal experts said.

204 cases filed under cyber laws that have remained pending with eight cyber tribunals across the country for more than five years

Five years after a Dhaka court delivered the first-ever verdict under the Torture and Custodial Death (Prevention) Act, 2013, in the Ishtiaque Hossain Jonny murder case, the victim’s family says justice remains incomplete.

With one judge for every 78,023 people, the Supreme Court and lower courts have been grappling with a growing backlog of cases, delaying legal remedies for thousands of justice seekers.

The final judgment in the cases is now pending with the Appellate Division as trial proceedings have been completed at the lower court and HC Division

Despite repeated proposals and directives, the interim government has yet to establish a separate secretariat for the judiciary, a crucial reform to ensure the judiciary’s institutional independence.

In a major step to reduce the crippling backlog of cases and restore public confidence in the judiciary, the authorities are set to appoint at least 20 additional High Court judges through the newly formed Supreme Judicial Appointment Council.

The High Court in the full text of a verdict has observed that the trial of a corruption case, in which BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman and his wife Zubaida Rahman were convicted and sentenced to different jail terms in 2023, was not held impartially.