January 2019: The High Court in January 2019, in response to a writ petition questioning the legality of earth filing, encroachment and development of structures along the banks of Turag river, declared rivers as legal persons.
January 2019: In the matter of a writ by CCB Foundation against National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) for its failure to take effective steps in the case of abuse and torture of the domestic servant, the High Court ordered NHRC to raise matters of the government’s non-compliance to the court any time if the government failed to abide by its recommendations.
January 2019: In response to a writ, the High Court ordered the Department of Environment (DoE) to conduct mobile court drives twice a week against parties causing air pollution in the capital.
June 2019: The High Court issued a rule to frame interim schemes for compensation and rehabilitation of rape victims in appropriate cases.
July 2019: The High Court issued a rule on the matter of extramarital affair, asking why the penalty for extramarital affairs provided in section 497 of the Penal Code should not be declared unconstitutional and illegal.
August 2019: The High Court orders removal of the word “Kumari” (virgin) from Kabinnama and directed that instead of “Kumari/unmarried/married/divorced” be inserted.
November 2019: The High Court issued a suo moto rule, thereby ordering the government to immediately release children aged below 12 years, who were detained in the child development centers following convictions by RAB’s mobile courts.
November 2019: The High Court, following a writ petition to ensure rights and proper medical facilities for prisoners, issued a rule asking the IG of prisons to inform the court about the number of doctors, vacant posts for doctors and holding capacity and existing inmates in Bangladesh.
December 2019: In response to a writ petition filed challenging the constitutionality of the definition of “related persons” contained in the Organ Transplantation Act 1999, the High Court directs to amend the Organ Transplantation Act 1999.
January 6, 2020: The High Court Division came up with the order and a rule following a writ petition jointly filed by 11 rights organizations including Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers’ Association (BELA), directing the concerned authorities of the government to ban the single-use of plastic products in the coastal areas and hotels, motels and restaurants across the country in the next 1 year.