The High Court yesterday deferred the hearing on a writ petition filed challenging the legality of keeping the post of Chief Justice vacant and not appointing a new Chief Justice. The HC bench comprising Justice Zinat Ara and Justice Kazi Md Ejarul Haque Akondo fixed January 28 for hearing following a time prayer made by the state for taking necessary preparations. Supreme Court lawyer Advocate Eunus Ali Akond filed the petition before the HC on January 3 praying to issue a rule asking the respondents to explain as to why their action keeping the post of Chief Justice vacant and not appointing a new Chief Justice should not be declared illegal. Four HC benches had earlier rejected the petition.

On January 3 in 2018, Akond filed the writ petition with the High Court praying to issue a rule asking the respondents to explain as to why their action keeping the post of Chief Justice vacant and not appointing a new Chief Justice should not be declared illegal. Secretaries of the Cabinet Division, President's Office and the Law Ministry and Prime Minister's Principal Secretary and Registrar General of the Supreme Court have been made respondents. Citing from the petition, Advocate Eunus Ali Akond said, the post of the Chief Justice cannot be kept vacant even for a day under the Constitution and that the respondents have not appointed the Chief Justice after Justice Surenda Kumar Sinha resigned on November 10 last year.

In a press release, Eunus said, several benches of the HC Division did not agree to hear the writ petition. He said in the petition that lawyers were being victimized by discrimination as 100 percent Appellate Division judges are appointed from the HC judges and the Chief Justice is appointed from the Appellate Division judges though this system is not mandatory.

He prayed in the petition to appoint the Chief Justice and Appellate Division judges from the lawyers. In India, Pakistan and USA, the SC judges are appointed from the lawyers, he also mentioned in the petition.

IK