Attorney General Md Ruhul Quddus Kazal has said that an appeal will be filed against the High Court verdict directing the establishment of an independent and separate secretariat for the Supreme Court within three months.
He made the remark on Wednesday while responding to questions from journalists at his office.
Earlier, on Tuesday, the High Court published the full text of its verdict, directing that an independent and separate secretariat for the Supreme Court be established within three months. The ruling also restores the authority over control and discipline of subordinate court judges to the Supreme Court.
The 185-page judgement was issued following signatures by a High Court bench comprising Justice Ahmed Sohel and Justice Debashish Roy Chowdhury.
In its verdict, the court instructed the government to establish a separate secretariat for the Bangladesh Supreme Court within three months from the date of the order, in line with a proposal from the Supreme Court authorities.
Advocate Mohammad Shishir Monir, one of the lawyers for the petitioners, said the ruling places control over lower courts under the Supreme Court rather than the President. The court also directed the establishment of a separate judicial secretariat in its full judgement.
The High Court declared amendments to Article 116 of the Constitution concerning control and discipline of subordinate courts unlawful, and reinstated the original provision of the 1972 Constitution. Under that provision, authority over posting, promotion, leave and discipline of judicial officers and magistrates rests with the Supreme Court.
Previously, under the existing Article 116, such authority was vested in the President, exercised in consultation with the Supreme Court.
The court held that the amendments introduced through the Fourth Amendment in 1975 and later through the Fifteenth Amendment in 2011 were inconsistent with the Constitution and therefore void.
Citing precedents set in the Eighth and Sixteenth Amendment cases, the High Court ruled that Article 116, as it stood in the 1972 Constitution, would automatically revive and take effect from the date of the judgement.
The court also declared the Judicial Service (Discipline) Rules, 2017 inconsistent with the Constitution.
The writ petition was filed on August 25, 2024 by seven lawyers, including Supreme Court advocate Saddam Hossain, challenging the legality of Article 116 and the 2017 rules, and seeking directions for the establishment of a separate judicial secretariat.
Following a preliminary hearing, the High Court issued a rule on October 27 that year, asking why the provisions should not be declared unconstitutional and why a separate judicial secretariat should not be established. After hearing the rule, the court delivered its verdict.
