Supreme Court of Bangladesh

Supreme Court of Bangladesh
বাংলাদেশ সুপ্রীম কোর্ট

Supreme Court of Bangladesh Logo
Country People's Republic of Bangladesh
Location Ramna, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh
Coordinates 23°43′51″N 90°24′09″E / 23.730777°N 90.402458°E / 23.730777; 90.402458Coordinates: 23°43′51″N 90°24′09″E / 23.730777°N 90.402458°E / 23.730777; 90.402458
Authorized by Constitution of Bangladesh
Website supremecourt.gov.bd
Chief Justice of Bangladesh
Currently Surendra Kumar Sinha[1]
Since 17 January 2015[2]
Supreme Court of Bangladesh in Dhaka

The Supreme Court of Bangladesh (Bengali: বাংলাদেশ সুপ্রীম কোর্ট) is the highest court of law in Bangladesh. It is composed of the High Court Division and the Appellate Division, and was created by Part VI Chapter I of the Constitution of Bangladesh adopted in 1972. This is also the office of the Chief Justice, Appellate Division Justices, and High Court Division Justices of Bangladesh. As of December 2016, there are 9 Justices in Appellate Division and 90 (80 are permanent and 10 are additional) in High Court Division.[1]

Structure

Supreme Court of Bangladesh is divided into two parts. First, the Appellate Division and second is the High Court Division. The High Court Division hears appeals from lower courts and tribunals; it also has original jurisdiction in certain limited cases, such as writ applications under Article 102 of the Constitution of Bangladesh, and company and admiralty matters. The Appellate Division has jurisdiction to hear appeals from the High Court Division.[3][4] The Supreme Court is independent of the executive branch, and is able to rule against the government in politically controversial cases.[5]

The Chief Justice of Bangladesh and other judges of the Supreme Court are appointed by the President of Bangladesh with prior mandatory consultation with the Prime Minister.[6] The entry point to the seat of judges in the High Court Division is the post of Additional Judge who are appointed from the practicing Advocates of the Supreme Court Bar Association and from the judicial service under the provision of Article 98 of the constitution for a period of two years. The current ratio of such appointment is 80%-20%. Upon successful completion of this period and upon recommendation by the Chief Justice an Additional Judge is appointed permanently by the President of Bangladesh under the provision of Article 95 of the Constitution. The judges of the Appellate Division are also appointed by the President of Bangladesh under the same provision. All such appointments come into effect on and from the date of taking oath by the appointee under the provision of Article 148 of the constitution.[6]

A judge of the Bangladesh Supreme Court holds office until (s)he attains the age of 67 years as extended by the provision of Constitution (Thirteenth) Amendment Act, 2004 (Act 14 of 2004). A retiring judge faces disability in pleading or acting before any court or authority or holding any office of profit in the service of the republic, not being a judicial or quasi-judicial office or the office of the Chief Adviser or Adviser.[6]

A Supreme Court Judge is not removable from office except in accordance with the provision of Article 96 of the Constitution which provides for Supreme Judicial Council empowering it to remove a judge of the supreme court from office upon allowing the delinquent judge an opportunity of being heard. The supreme judicial council is constituted with the Chief Justice of Bangladesh and next two senior judge of the Appellate Division, provided if at any time the Council inquiring into the capacity or conduct of a judge who is a member of the supreme judicial council,or a member of the council is absent or is unable to act due to illness or other cause, the judge who is the next in seniority to those who are members of the Council shall act as such member.[6]

Supreme court judges are independent in their judicial function as empowered through article 94(4) of the Constitution.[6]

Judgments of Supreme Court of Bangladesh

As per Article 111 of the Constitution of Bangladesh, 1972, the Supreme Court judgments have binding effects and the article provides that the law declared by the Appellate Division shall be binding on the High Court Division and the law declared by either division of the Supreme Court shall be binding on all courts subordinate to it.

These judgements are usually digested in the Bangladesh Supreme Court Digest. There are also many law reports which publish the judgments and orders of the Supreme Court. All these law reports are in printed volumes. Only Chancery Law Chronicles offers the Online service of judgments of Supreme Court of Bangladesh.

Judges

Sitting Judges of the Appellate Division

Name Date appointed in Appellate Division Date appointed in High Court Division as additional judge Mandatory retirement Appointing President at High Court Division Prime Minister at time of appointment in High Court Division Judicial position before appointment as Justice Law school
Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha[7] 16 July 2009 [8] 24 October 1999 31 January 2018 Shahabuddin Ahmed Sheikh Hasina (Awami League) Advocate at Supreme Court Chittagong University
Justice Md. Abdul Wahhab Miah 23 February 2011 [9] 24 October 1999 10 November 2018 Shahabuddin Ahmed Sheikh Hasina (Awami League) Advocate at Supreme Court Dhaka University
Madame Justice Nazmun Ara Sultana 23 February 2011[10] 28 May 2000 7 July 2017 Shahabuddin Ahmed Sheikh Hasina (Awami League) District and Session Judge Dhaka University
Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain 23 February 2011 22 February 2001 30 December 2021 Shahabuddin Ahmed Sheikh Hasina (Awami League) Deputy Attorney General Dhaka University
Justice Md. Imman Ali[11] 23 February 2011 22 February 2001 31 December 2022 Shahabuddin Ahmed Sheikh Hasina (Awami League) Advocate at Supreme Court Chittagong University; Dhaka University; Lincoln's Inn
Justice Hasan Foez Siddique 31 March 2013 22 February 2001 25 September 2023 Shahabuddin Ahmed Sheikh Hasina (Awami League) Advocate at Supreme Court Chittagong University
Justice Mirza Hussain Haider 8 February 2016 3 July 2001 28 February 2021 Shahabuddin Ahmed Sheikh Hasina (Awami League) Advocate at Supreme Court Dhaka University
Justice Md. Nizamul Huq[12][13] 8 February 2016 3 July 2001 14 March 2017 Shahabuddin Ahmed Sheikh Hasina (Awami League) Advocate at Supreme Court
Justice Mohammad Bazlur Rahman[14] 8 February 2016 3 July 2001 11 April 2022 Shahabuddin Ahmed Sheikh Hasina (Awami League) Advocate at Supreme Court Rajshahi University

Sitting Permanent Judges of the High Court Division

  1. Justice Syed Muhammad Dastagir Husain
  2. Justice Mizanur Rahman Bhuiyan[15]
  3. Justice Syed A B Mahmudul Huq
  4. Justice Tariq ul Hakim
  5. Madame Justice Salma Masud Chowdhury
  6. Justice Farid Ahmed
  7. Justice Shamim Hasnain
  8. Justice A.F.M Abdur Rahman
  9. Justice Dr. Md. Abu Tariq
  10. Madame Justice Zinat Ara
  11. Justice Muhammad Abdul Hafiz
  12. Justice Dr. Syed Refaat Ahmed
  13. Justice Miftah Uddin Choudhury
  14. Justice A. K. M. Asaduzzaman
  15. Justice Md. Ashfaqul Islam
  16. Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury
  17. Justice Quamrul Islam Siddiqui
  18. Justice Md. Fazlur Rahman
  19. Justice Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury
  20. Justice Md. Emdadul Huq
  21. Justice Md. Rais Uddin
  22. Justice Md. Emdadul Haque Azad
  23. Justice Md. Ataur Rahman Khan
  24. Justice Syed Md. Ziaul Karim
  25. Justice Md. Rezaul Haque
  26. Justice Sheikh Abdul Awal
  27. Justice S. M. Emdadul Hoque
  28. Justice Mamnoon Rahman
  29. Madame Justice Farah Mahbub
  30. Justice A. K. M. Abdul Hakim
  31. Justice Borhanuddin
  32. Justice M. Moazzam Husain
  33. Justice Soumendra Sarker
  34. Justice Abu Bakar Siddiquee
  35. Justice Md. Nuruzzaman
  36. Justice Md. Moinul Islam Chowdhury
  37. Justice Obaidul Hassan
  38. Justice M Enayetur Rahim
  39. Madame Justice Dr. Naima Haydar
  40. Justice Md. Rezaul Hasan
  41. Justice Md. Faruque[16]
  42. Justice Md. Shawkat Hossain
  43. Justice F. R. M. Nazmula Ahasan
  44. Madame Justice Krishna Debnath
  45. Justice A. N. M. Bashir Ullah
  46. Justice Abdur Rob
  47. Justice Dr. Quazi Reza-Ul Hoque
  48. Justice Md. Abu Zafor Siddique
  49. Justice A. K. M. Zahirul Hoque
  50. Justice Jahangir Hossain
  51. Justice Sheikh Md. Zakir Hossain
  52. Justice Md. Habibul Gani
  53. Justice Gobinda Chandra Tagore
  54. Justice Sheikh Hassan Arif
  55. Justice J. B. M. Hassan
  56. Justice Md. Ruhul Quddus[17]
  57. Justice Md. Khasruzzaman
  58. Justice Farid Ahmed
  59. Justice Md. Nazrul Islam Talukder
  60. Justice Bhabani Prasad Singh[18][19]
  61. Justice Anwarul Haque
  62. Justice M Akram Hossain Chowdhury
  63. Justice M Ashraful Kamal
  64. Justice S H Nurul Huda Jaygirdar[20][21]
  65. Justice K M Kamrul Kader
  66. Justice Mohammad Khurshid Alam Sarker
  67. Justice Mohammad Mujibur Rahman Miah
  68. Justice Mostofa Zaman Islam
  69. Justice Mohammadullah
  70. Justice A K M Shahidul Haque
  71. Justice Shahidul Karim
  72. Justice Mohammad Jahangir
  73. Justice Abu Taher Mohammad Saifur Rahman
  74. Justice Ashish Ranjan Daash[22][23]
  75. Justice Mahmudul Haque
  76. Justice Badruzzaman Badol
  77. Justice Zafar Ahmed
  78. Justice Kazi M Ejarul Haque Akond
  79. Justice Mohammad Shahinur Islam[24]
  80. Madame Justice Kashefa Hussain

Additional Judges of Highcourt Division

  1. Justice Syed Mohammad Mozibur Rahman[25]
  2. Justice Farid Ahmed Shibli
  3. Justice Amir Hossain
  4. Justice Khizir Ahmed Choudhury
  5. Justice Razik Al-Jalil
  6. Justice Jyotirmoy Narayan Deb Chowdhury
  7. Justice Bhishmadev Chakrabortty
  8. Justice Md. Iqbal Kabir
  9. Justice Md. Salim
  10. Justice Md. Sohrowardi

Current Chief Justice Surandra Kumar Sinha is the first justice appointed from Monipuri or any minority Ethnic groups in Bangladesh. Justice Bhabani Prasad Sinha is also from the same community.

Madame Justice Nazmun Ara Sultana is the first ever female justice, and Madame Justice Krishna Debnath is the first female Hindu justice of Bangladesh. There are currently six female justices in the supreme court.

Controversy

Former Chief Justice Mohammad Fazlul Karim withheld the oath taking of Justice Md. Ruhul Quddus (Babu) as he was involved in the murder of Aaslam, a pro-Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh student of Rajshahi University, on 17 November 1988, when he was a leader of Jatiyo Samajtantrik Dal (JSD), and Justice Mohammad Khosruzzaman was overtly involved in contempt of court on 30 November 2006.[26] Justice Nazrul Islam Talukder was the counsel of Captain (Rtd.) Qismet Hashem, one of the accused in Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the first President of Bangladesh, and the jail killing in 1975.

Justice Imman Ali is a British citizen,[11] which may preclude him from taking the post of justice in Bangladesh.[27]

Justice Shah Abu Nayeem Mominur Rahman, an appellate division judge, first ever among these judges, resigned on May 12, 2011 due to supersession, as he was presumed to be the Chief Justice of Bangladesh on May 18, 2011.[28]

Justice Mohammad Nizamul Huq resigned from the post of International Crimes Tribunal (ICT)-1 chairman on December 11, 2012 amid controversy for holding Skype conversations with an expatriate Bangladeshi legal expert based in Belgium.[13]

President of Bangladesh ordered for formation of a Supreme Judicial Council to investigate alleged misconduct of High Court judge Justice Mizanur Rahman Bhuiyan after he distributed copies of a February 17 The Daily Inqilab report, termed slain (on 15 February 2013) 2013 Shahbag protests activist and blogger Ahmed Rajib Haider was a moortad (heretic), among the justices of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh.[15]

Three High Court judges were promoted to the Appellate Division by supersession, e.g. Justice Siddiqur Rahman Miah superseded 3 senior judges, Justice Hasan Foez Siddique and Justice A. H. M. Shamsuddin Chowdhury superseded 40 senior judges. It was widely believed that the promotions had been made on a political basis. Moreover, just a few months before this promotion to the Appellate Division, the Jatiya Sangshad passed a resolution accusing Justice A. H. M. Shamsuddin Chowdhury for violating the Constitution and his oath. Speaker Abdul Hamid, who issued the ruling against Justice A. H. M. Shamsuddin Chowdhury, later become the President of Bangladesh, after the death of President Zillur Rahman.

Justice A B M Altaf Hossain was not confirmed as a permanent justice on June 12, 2014 despite recommendation from the Chief Justice of Bangladesh. So he has served legal notices to the top bureaucrats of Bangladesh government to reinstate him within 72 hours.[29]

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 List of Judges in Supreme Court of Bangladesh; SupremeCourt.gov.bd
  2. ↑ "Justice SK Sinha takes over as CJ". The Daily Star.
  3. ↑ Supreme Court of Bangladesh, Ministry of LPAP, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs of Bangladesh
  4. ↑ First Bangladesh Online Case Law Database, Chancery Law Chronicles- Database of Judgements of Appellate Division of Supreme Court
  5. ↑ Bangladesh, "Jurist Legal News and Research", University of Pittsburgh School of Law
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Constitution of Bangladesh
  7. ↑ "Justice SK Sinha takes over as CJ". 18 January 2015. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  8. ↑ New SC judge alleges move to remove him from HC The Daily Star. 17 July 2009.
  9. ↑ 4 SC judges sworn in The Daily Star. 24 February 2011.
  10. ↑ "SC gets 1st woman judge". 23 February 2011. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  11. 1 2 http://www.amardeshonline.com/pages/details/2010/05/05/30393
  12. ↑ "Tribunal chief's net talks, mail hacked". 7 December 2012. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  13. 1 2 "Remove Justice Nizamul from HC". 31 December 2012. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  14. ↑ "10 HC judges sworn in". 26 March 2009. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  15. 1 2 "Pro-BNP, Jamaat lawyers oppose president's move". 27 February 2013. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  16. ↑ "Appointment of 15 judges regularised". 12 April 2012. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  17. ↑ "4 HC judges to be sworn in today". 15 October 2012. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  18. ↑ "Jobs of 4 HC judges regularised". 10 December 2012. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  19. ↑ BanglaNews24.com. "bangla news and entertainment 24x7 - banglanews24.com". Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  20. ↑ "News in Brief". 8 October 2013. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  21. ↑ "bdnews24.com". Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  22. ↑ "5 addl HC judges sworn in". 12 June 2014. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  23. ↑ "Justice Manik tasked with criminal cases". 15 June 2012. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  24. ↑ "Newly appointed HC judges take oath". 6 August 2013. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  25. ↑ "10 HC judges sworn in". 13 February 2015. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  26. ↑ "Oath of 2 angers pro-BNP lawyers". 5 November 2010. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  27. ↑ "cellflexi.com - cellflexi Resources and Information.". Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  28. ↑ "CJ-hopeful Nayeem resigns". 13 May 2011. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  29. ↑ http://theindependentbd.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=221939:legal-notice-served-on-govt&catid=132:backpage&Itemid=122

References

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