Judiciary law may be passed in a week, says Law Minister
Friday, 13 March 2009
Law Minister Shafiq Ahmed Thursday said he expects passage of a law on separation of the judiciary within a week, just a day after the High Court questioned the legality of judicial magistracy in absence of the law, reports bdnews24.com.
The government came under fire from the High Court Wednesday for the delay in the passage of the caretaker government's judiciary separation ordinance. In a suo moto rule, the court questioned the legality of the judicial magistracy after February 24, the day the ordinance expired.
The bench of justices ABM Khairul Haque and Abdul Hye gave the law secretary and the Supreme Court registrar until March 19 to answer the rule.
The judges wanted to know under what legal power the judicial magistrates have been functioning since February 24. They also wanted to know why their functioning since the date should not be declared without proper legal authority.
The law secretary Thursday said the matter would be resolved in parliament, as necessary.
The court in the rule said the parliament had not passed the amended CrPC ordinances 30 days after it was tabled in the maiden session. The ordinances expired on February 24 since they were not passed, according to the Constitution.
The court solicited opinion of senior lawyers M Zahir and Mahmudul Islam in the hearing on a petition regarding the appointment of staff to assist judicial magistracy and metropolitan magistracy. The lawyers wer e on the committee that reviewed the ordinances made by the interim government.
They said they had suggested passage in parliament of the ordinance on the separation of the judiciary.
The judiciary was made independent on November 1, 2007.
The government came under fire from the High Court Wednesday for the delay in the passage of the caretaker government's judiciary separation ordinance. In a suo moto rule, the court questioned the legality of the judicial magistracy after February 24, the day the ordinance expired.
The bench of justices ABM Khairul Haque and Abdul Hye gave the law secretary and the Supreme Court registrar until March 19 to answer the rule.
The judges wanted to know under what legal power the judicial magistrates have been functioning since February 24. They also wanted to know why their functioning since the date should not be declared without proper legal authority.
The law secretary Thursday said the matter would be resolved in parliament, as necessary.
The court in the rule said the parliament had not passed the amended CrPC ordinances 30 days after it was tabled in the maiden session. The ordinances expired on February 24 since they were not passed, according to the Constitution.
The court solicited opinion of senior lawyers M Zahir and Mahmudul Islam in the hearing on a petition regarding the appointment of staff to assist judicial magistracy and metropolitan magistracy. The lawyers wer e on the committee that reviewed the ordinances made by the interim government.
They said they had suggested passage in parliament of the ordinance on the separation of the judiciary.
The judiciary was made independent on November 1, 2007.