Justice seekers, lawyers, and court staff are spending their days in a state of panic from fear of getting infected with coronavirus due to people not following social distancing measures in the court premises.
Though the World Health Organization (WHO) has emphasised maintaining social distancing to curb the transmission of Covid-19, the practice of maintaining social distancing is clearly absent in courts and around them.
Dhaka Court Additional Public Prosecutor Anwarul Kabir Babul told Dhaka Tribune that there was a lack of health safety measures at the court.
"It would be better if there were arrangements like hand sanitizing stations and other health safety measures at the entrance to the court," he said.
The authorities are yet to take any action in installing health safety equipment at the Dhaka court area to protect people from coronavirus.
Sources said that the situation was more or less similar at all courts across the country.
Every day hundreds of lawyers and justice seekers have to make their way to the court premises to carry out various manual tasks and collect necessary papers, despite court proceedings taking place virtually to contain the spread of coronavirus.
Court staff and lawyers are worried about being infected as many people, mainly justice seekers, are not maintaining health guidelines even in this pandemic.
Public prosecutor Babul alleged: “Despite being informed about the possibility of getting infected with coronavirus, many justice seekers are not following health safety measures.”
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Court on Tuesday, June 9, 2020 | Dhaka Tribune
It was his opinion that it would be better if there was someone to monitor health safety issues at the courts.
Advocate Zakaria Haider of Dhaka Court said though court activities were going on virtually, the presence of justice seekers and advocates had increased in the court areas since the reopening of government offices.
“Now, we are facing challenges regarding following health safety guidelines as many people are still not conscious enough about protecting themselves from getting infected with Covid-19," he stated.
The lawyer said he had observed that many people were not wearing masks or using hand sanitizers.
Senior and junior lawyers alike have demanded the installation of disinfection tunnels, similar to such steps in other government offices, at the gate of Dhaka Court and other district courts to ensure the health safety of people.
They are waiting for the authorities concerned to take the decision to keep lawyers, court staff and justice seekers protected from the threat of Covid-19 infection.
Hossen Ali khan Hasan, secretary of Dhaka Bar Association, told Dhaka Tribune: “We are trying to provide protection to all lawyers and litigants.
“Besides, we are trying earnestly to take necessary steps to protect people from Covid-19. Everyday many people are coming to the court premises,” he said.
He added: “On behalf of Dhaka Bar Association, we are trying to maintain the area as a virus-free zone as far as possible.”
