The government has decided to extend the existing law for Speedy Trial Tribunal by five more years for effective and quick trials for crimes such as extortion, tender manipulation, vandalism, mugging, etc.
The cabinet approved the draft to amend the Law and Order Disruption Offence (Speedy Trial) Act to extend the term of the Speedy Trial Tribunal by five more years on Monday.
The decision was made during a regular cabinet meeting on Monday, chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan briefed the media about the decision after the meeting.
A proposal for amendment of the Law and Order Disruption Offence (Speedy Trial) Act for running the speedy trial tribunal was approved in the meeting, the cabinet secretary said.
This was the sixth extension of the term of the law. The validity of the law would expire on April 6 this year.
It was extended on April 6, 2012 earlier. The fourth extension was approved from April 10 to April 9, 2012.
The third extension by the caretaker government ended on April 9, 2010.
The Law and Order Disruption Offence (Speedy Trial) Act was enacted on April 10, 2002 for two years to ensure quick trials of the crimes.
In 2004, it was extended by two years while the second extension was in 2006, and third in 2008 by the council of advisers with the then chief adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed in the chair.
Musharraf Hossain said the cabinet gave final approval for the extension proposal that was placed by the home ministry.
In a proposal, the home ministry said trials of a good number of cases are going on under this act now. If the act is nullified, the proceedings of the cases will stop and it may deteriorate the law and order of the country.
After introduction of the law, cases could be disposed of in a short time, added the proposal.
The proposal was brought considering the law and order situation of last few months across the country, a minister who attended the cabinet meeting told the Dhaka Tribune.
The proposal of extending the duration of the act would be sent to the sitting of parliament which has already been running, the cabinet secretary added.
The government has made this decision even though the present ruling Awami League was against the law while it was in the opposition in 2002, terming it a “black law”.
Under a provision of the law, the Speedy Trial Tribunal, a special court, will have to dispose of a case within 90 working days of the cases being transferred to them. If the case cannot be disposed of in that time, another 30 working days would be granted.
Any aggrieved person would be entitled to appeal to the High Court against a judgment of the Speedy Trial Tribunal within 30 days of the ruling.
