COMMENTS ON SC VERDICT
Legal notice served to Law Commission chief Khairul
Law Commission (LC) chairman ABM Khairul Haque was served a legal notice yesterday, asking him to withdraw his comments on the Supreme Court (SC) judgment on the 16th amendment to the Constitution. On August 9, ABM Khairul Haque, at a press briefing, had strongly criticised the SC verdict, terming it irrelevant and immature.
SC lawyer Advocate BM Sultan Mahmud sent the notice to Haque, who is also a former chief justice, stating that legal action would be taken against him if the law commission chief does not withdraw his comments and apologise to the people within 24 hours.
In his notice, Sultan Mahmud said that what Haque had remarked at the press briefing was outside judicial norms and values.
At the briefing, you addressed the honourable Chief Justice of Bangladesh Surendra Kumar Sinha as headmaster and other judges of the SC as students. You also asked whether other judges are really bound to listen to him, which has shocked me, the legal notice read.
Sultan Mahmud also said that the Law Commission is an organisation made by the government, which, in turn, makes Justice Khairul Haque a government servant. You (Khairul Haque) dont have the right to comment on any judgment passed by the Supreme Court of Bangladesh, he said in the notice.
The notice also said: The ex-chief justice ABM Khairul Haque made contradictory statements at the press briefing. You (Khairul Haque) had repealed the 5th, 7th and 13th amendments to the Constitution, but at that time you didnt repeal the system of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC). You had upheld it. Now, after so many days, youre opposing the system of the SJC. We think that you are acting with some dishonest purpose now.
The notice also alleged that Haque had committed a judicial crime while delivering the judgment relating to the 13th amendment to the Constitution. He had said that successive national elections may be held under the system of the non-party caretaker government, but avoided the issue in the full judgment of the case.
Your comments are derogatory. What you had said at the press briefing sounded a lot like something that would be uttered by a political leader, even though you are holding the chair of the Law Commission. Your comments have undermined the Supreme Court. Hence, you are requested to withdraw your comments and apologise to the people of Bangladesh within 24 hours from the time of receiving the notice. Otherwise, legal action will be taken against you, it added.
