HC restores SC authority, orders judiciary secretariat in 3 months

The High Court (HC) today (September 2) restored the Supreme Court’s authority over the control and discipline of subordinate court judges, overturning a constitutional amendment that had vested this power in the executive.

The court also directed the government to establish a separate judicial secretariat within three months.

A division bench comprising Justice Ahmed Sohel and Justice Debasish Roy Chowdhury delivered the judgment, striking down the amendment to Article 116 of the Constitution and reinstating its original 1972 provision.

The ruling came in response to a writ petition filed by seven Supreme Court lawyers on August 25 last year. They also challenged the Judicial Service (Discipline) Rules, 2017, and sought a directive to set up a judicial secretariat.

Following hearings from both sides, the bench fixed today for the verdict.

Advocate Mohammad Shishir Manir appeared for the petitioners, Attorney General Md Asaduzzaman represented the state, while senior lawyer Sharif Bhuiyan acted as amicus curiae and lawyer Ahsanul Karim as intervener.