The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court yesterday sought opinion of the authorities concerned on how many doctors among 111 are qualified, who were appointed in 2006 as medical officers at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, and could be kept in the service. It asked the Attorney General Mahbubey Alam to inform the court by next Sunday how many doctors are qualified to continue the service, after discussing the issue with the BSMMU authorities. A five-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha came up with the order during hearing on five separate petitions filed by the 111 doctors seeking review of the court’s earlier order that had, on February 22 this year, rejected appeals filed by the doctors against a High Court verdict which had cancelled their recruitment. Later, the apex court fixed next Sunday for further hearing on the petitions.
Dr Kamal Hossain, Rokanuddin Mahmud, Sharif Bhuiyan, Kamrul Huq Siddique and AM Amin Uddin appeared for the doctors while Attorney General Mahbubey Alam represented the state. According to the case documents, the BSMMU advertised in a newspaper on October 18, 2005, seeking to recruit medical officers. It did not mention any definite number of vacant posts. The authorities concerned later appointed 111 medical officers on March 1, 2006, and their jobs were regularised on March 18, 2008. Later, in response to a writ petition filed by a doctor challenging the appointments, the HC on December 14 in 2010 declared their  appointment illegal. When the BSMMU and the aggrieved physicians challenged the verdict with the Appellate Division, the apex court stayed the High Court order on December 20 the same year. However, after six years, the Appellate Division on February 22 this year upheld the High Court order. Later, the doctors filed review petitions with the apex court seeking reconsideration of its verdict.