Protesters besiege SC, ask CJ to step down by 1pm

Several hundred protesters laid siege to the Supreme Court, issuing an ultimatum to Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan and the judges of the Appellate Division to resign by 1:00pm today.

Hasnat Abdullah, a coordinator of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, delivered the ultimatum from the Supreme Court premises, accusing the Chief Justice and other judges of plotting a "judicial coup d'état." The protesters threatened to cordon off the residences of the justices if their demands were not met.

The demonstration began around 10:30am, with students and lawyers gathering on the Supreme Court premises, demanding the resignation of the Chief Justice and Appellate Division judges. The protesters chanted slogans such as "One-two-three-four, the Chief Justice has to go," "Break the black hand of dictatorship," and "We will not accept Hasina's chief justice."

Coinciding with the protest, a full court meeting of the Bangladesh Supreme Court, scheduled for 10:30am on Saturday, was abruptly suspended just before it was set to begin. The meeting was to include all judges from both the High Court Division and the Appellate Division.

Supreme Court Registrar General Aziz Ahmad Bhuyan informed reporters that the meeting had been suspended and would not take place as planned.

By 12:15pm, hundreds of students had gathered on the High Court premises, further intensifying the demonstration.

Asif Mahmud Sajeeb Bhuiyan, the adviser for the Ministry of Youth and Sports and a coordinator of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, took to social media to oppose the full court meeting. He demanded the unconditional resignation of the Chief Justice and the cancellation of the meeting.

In his post, Asif Mahmud accused the Chief Justice of supporting fascism and engaging in various misdeeds. He claimed the Chief Justice called the meeting without consulting the government and warned that any conspiracy by "defeated powers" would not be tolerated. Asif Mahmud reiterated the demand for the Chief Justice's resignation and cautioned of severe consequences if the Chief Justice continued to oppose the student movement.