Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha yesterday said comments should not be made on the independence of judiciary without any authentic document and evidence.
He urged lawyers and prosecutors to cooperate with judges to adjudicate cases in order to reduce backlog quickly.
“In many courts, I saw that lawyers are not willing to cross-examine case witnesses after 3pm. If lawyers and prosecutors do not cooperate, it is impossible for judges to reduce the backlog of cases,” he said while speaking at a seminar on justice sector coordination at Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge Court. The United Nations Development Programme and the Supreme Court organised the seminar.
Earlier at the seminar, the chief justice inaugurated the “Mobile App for Cause List Access” programme, and said lawyers as well as plaintiffs could see the daily cause list using the app.
He said the professional attire of lawyers should be changed as all courts are not air-conditioned and do not always have uninterrupted electricity supply.
Justice Sinha said the huge backlog of cases was not created in just a couple of years.
“In fact, the backlog is an outcome of collective failure of all stakeholders. But what is the public perception about this? The masses point fingers at us since judges and lawyers are the main stakeholders of the justice system.”
The chief technical adviser of UNDP, Chirstian Jorn Eldon, said the time had come to make concerted efforts by all justice sector stakeholders to free the judiciary from the backlog of cases and expedite trials.
“The judiciary needs to enhance its overall capacity through continuous reforms and innovation to promote people’s confidence,” he said.
Dhaka District and Sessions Judge SM Kuddus Zaman presided over the seminar while Supreme Court Registrar General Syed Aminul Islam was also present.
Dhaka Bar President Advocate Masud Ahmed Talukder, Secretary Omar Faruque Faruquee, District Judge SM Kuddus Jaman, Metropolitan Sessions Judge Md Kamrul Hossain Molla and Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sheikh Hafizur Rahman were present in the seminar among others.