From now on the country’s courts holding virtual hearings will be able to hear remand pleas by law enforcement agencies.
The Supreme Court issued a new circular on Sunday that said remand petitions could be heard by benches during virtual hearings, if the accused can attend them online from jails.
Since May 11, the courts have only been hearing bail pleas through virtual hearings, in an unprecedented development after the government shut down offices, businesses and public transport amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
The virtual hearings are still ongoing to maintain safety, even though all restrictions were relaxed recently.
Sunday’s circular also said that civil and criminal cases and cases filed under the Negotiable Instruments Act or appeals in such cases — that have deadlines in line with the laws concerned or does not fall under purview of Section 5 of the Limitation Act — can be filed virtually.
The magistrate will accept the case or appeal and fix a suitable date for the next hearing or to record witness statements, it added.
On May 10, the chief justice had issued directives and a user manual in line with an ordinance issued by President Md Abdul Hamid the previous day, allowing regular court proceedings to take place virtually until further notice during the pandemic.
