DHAKA, Nov 1: Bangladesh formally declared its judiciary free from executive control on Thursday as part of legal reforms aimed at ensuring justice for all.
The Supreme Court will appoint all lower court judges and judicial magistrates and hold them responsible for their actions. The judges and magistrates were earlier chosen by the establishment ministry headed by the prime minister, making them vulnerable to pulls and pressures from the executive, legal experts said.
“The judiciary is fully independent of the executive from today and from now the courts and the judges will establish rule of law without the interference of the executives,” interim government head Fakhruddin Ahmed said at a function to mark the separation of the judiciary and the executive.
The army-backed interim administration says it is working to make the judiciary independent as part of a drive to establish good governance. It has also launched a crackdown on corruption, arresting more than 170 political figures to face charges of graft and abuse of power.
An administration official said political parties had repeatedly promised to separate the judiciary from the executive organ of the state but failed to deliver. “The government has fulfilled the desire of the people,” law adviser Mainul Husein told reporters.
“The separation of judiciary from the executive will help establish justice,” Chief Justice Ruhul Amin told the function.
Bangladesh has been under a state of emergency since the interim government, headed by Mr Fakhruddin, a former central bank governor, took office in January after months of deadly political violence.
It has vowed to hold a free and fair election late next year, after completing the drive against corruption.
Western envoys hailed the attempt to make the judiciary independent. “This is a great success for the caretaker government,” German Ambassador Frank Myke told a news agency.
“The US government congratulates the caretaker government for the reforms,” a US embassy spokesmen said.—Reuters
