th Deputy Speaker Fazle Rabbi Miah in the chair. The committee brought changes in some of the clauses and deleted unnecessary preamble of the bill. The bill is expected to be passed on September 18. Presenting the bill, Suranjit told the House that through the bill, the position of the judges has been made more protected and honoured. “If the bill is transformed into an act, people’s reliance on the independent judiciary and the image of the independent judiciary will remain upheld,” he said, adding that the bill would work as a safeguard for the judges and drive out the confusion of the vested quarter. Terming the critics of the bill ‘knowledge sinner’, he said the word impeachment was not written anywhere in the bill. “The word ‘impeachment’ has been written only for a single time which is applicable only for the President. But the quarter mixed it,” he said, adding that Dr Kamal Hossain and Barrister Amirul Islam also joined the quarter. Suranjit said at least two-third votes are needed for the removal of the judges while a single majority can remove the President, Prime Minister and Speaker. In the written speech, he said all expect an independent and neutral judiciary under the democratic regime. The Article 96 of the 1972 Constitution had the provision to impeach the judges of the Supreme Court with a majority of two-third votes of the total members of parliament. “It is against the norm of democratic practice to impeach the judges on the basis of a single investigation report but the provision has been amended for several times. As a result, the independence, transparency and image of the Supreme Court have been tarnished,” he said. He said that the said Article has been amended for fourth time through the Fourth, Fifth, Seventh and fourteenth amendments. He said the Fourth Amendment was brought in the Constitution for a balance due to a change in government system in 1975 but the Fifth Amendment was made through an unconstitutional way in 1978. “But the two amendments—Seventh and Fourteenth—were carried out with ill motives,” he said, adding that noted judges were removed from offices by reducing the age through the amendment while another amendment was made with a motive to make a special one as the chief adviser of the caretaker government. As a result, 1/11 was staged and the continuation of constitution halted. The committee chairman said, “I want to say firmly that this amendment has not been made with any political motive rather this move has been taken to go back to the spirit of the 1972 Constitution.” Expressing a sigh of frustration, he said a quarter is trying to mislead the law-abiding people by using the word ‘impeachment’. The proposed amendment in the Article 96 will substitute the clauses, including clause 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and clause 8 with clause 2, 3 and clause 4. The proposed amendment keeps the clause 1: a judge shall hold office until he attains the age of sixty-seven years, unchanged. The objective of the bill says that in accordance with the Article 7 and 11 of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, all powers in the republic belong to the people and their exercise on behalf of the people shall be only under and by the authority of this Constitution. On its reflection, in the Article 96 of the Constitution enacted in 1972, there were provisions relating to a removal of a judge of the Supreme Court pursuant to a resolution of parliament supported by a majority not less than two-thirds of the total number of members of parliament but later this provision was dropped instituting a new mechanism – the Supreme Judicial Commission, headed by the chief justice and two other senior judges. The mechanism was against the spirit of democracy, the main spirit of the Constitution. In most of the democratic countries in the world, the principle of accountability of the judges of the superior court, like other organs of the State, lies in parliament, consisting of the elected representatives of the people. Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Anisul Hoque placed the bill before the House on September 7. The House sent the bill to committee, giving it a seven-day time to place its report after scrutiny.
Monday, September 15, 2014
JS body submits report:Daily Sun
th Deputy Speaker Fazle Rabbi Miah in the chair. The committee brought changes in some of the clauses and deleted unnecessary preamble of the bill. The bill is expected to be passed on September 18. Presenting the bill, Suranjit told the House that through the bill, the position of the judges has been made more protected and honoured. “If the bill is transformed into an act, people’s reliance on the independent judiciary and the image of the independent judiciary will remain upheld,” he said, adding that the bill would work as a safeguard for the judges and drive out the confusion of the vested quarter. Terming the critics of the bill ‘knowledge sinner’, he said the word impeachment was not written anywhere in the bill. “The word ‘impeachment’ has been written only for a single time which is applicable only for the President. But the quarter mixed it,” he said, adding that Dr Kamal Hossain and Barrister Amirul Islam also joined the quarter. Suranjit said at least two-third votes are needed for the removal of the judges while a single majority can remove the President, Prime Minister and Speaker. In the written speech, he said all expect an independent and neutral judiciary under the democratic regime. The Article 96 of the 1972 Constitution had the provision to impeach the judges of the Supreme Court with a majority of two-third votes of the total members of parliament. “It is against the norm of democratic practice to impeach the judges on the basis of a single investigation report but the provision has been amended for several times. As a result, the independence, transparency and image of the Supreme Court have been tarnished,” he said. He said that the said Article has been amended for fourth time through the Fourth, Fifth, Seventh and fourteenth amendments. He said the Fourth Amendment was brought in the Constitution for a balance due to a change in government system in 1975 but the Fifth Amendment was made through an unconstitutional way in 1978. “But the two amendments—Seventh and Fourteenth—were carried out with ill motives,” he said, adding that noted judges were removed from offices by reducing the age through the amendment while another amendment was made with a motive to make a special one as the chief adviser of the caretaker government. As a result, 1/11 was staged and the continuation of constitution halted. The committee chairman said, “I want to say firmly that this amendment has not been made with any political motive rather this move has been taken to go back to the spirit of the 1972 Constitution.” Expressing a sigh of frustration, he said a quarter is trying to mislead the law-abiding people by using the word ‘impeachment’. The proposed amendment in the Article 96 will substitute the clauses, including clause 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and clause 8 with clause 2, 3 and clause 4. The proposed amendment keeps the clause 1: a judge shall hold office until he attains the age of sixty-seven years, unchanged. The objective of the bill says that in accordance with the Article 7 and 11 of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, all powers in the republic belong to the people and their exercise on behalf of the people shall be only under and by the authority of this Constitution. On its reflection, in the Article 96 of the Constitution enacted in 1972, there were provisions relating to a removal of a judge of the Supreme Court pursuant to a resolution of parliament supported by a majority not less than two-thirds of the total number of members of parliament but later this provision was dropped instituting a new mechanism – the Supreme Judicial Commission, headed by the chief justice and two other senior judges. The mechanism was against the spirit of democracy, the main spirit of the Constitution. In most of the democratic countries in the world, the principle of accountability of the judges of the superior court, like other organs of the State, lies in parliament, consisting of the elected representatives of the people. Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Anisul Hoque placed the bill before the House on September 7. The House sent the bill to committee, giving it a seven-day time to place its report after scrutiny.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment