HC verdict on judges' appointment today

The High Court will deliver a verdict today on a seven-year-old writ petition that sought specific guidelines for selecting the persons for appointment of judges to the court.

The bench of Justice Obaidul Hassan and Justice Krishna Debnath yesterday fixed the date for announcing the judgement, as it concluded the hearing on the petition in August last year.

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Supreme Court lawyer barrister Raghib Rauf Chowdhury filed the petition in June 2010, stating that the existing process of selection of people for the post of HC judges lacks transparency and competitiveness since there is no specific guideline in this regard.

In such a situation, judges are being appointed through a very weak system, and a culture of nepotism has developed due to suggestions made by the executive, undoubtedly favouring persons with similar political ideologies and political connection with the ruling party, he said.     

Following the petition, the HC on June 6, 2010, asked the government to inform it within four weeks the process or system followed for selection of persons for appointment as judges both in the Appellate and High Court divisions of the SC since independence of the country.

It also issued a rule asking the government to explain why a specific guideline to appoint its judges should not be framed to bring transparency and competitiveness in the process.

Petitioner's counsel barrister Hassan MS Azim told The Daily Star yesterday that the government did not give any reply to the HC rule and did not inform the court about the existing process for selecting candidates for the HC judges. 

Azim said the HC had heard experts' opinions from four amice curiae (friends of the court) -- Dr Kamal Hossain, barrister Shafique Ahmed, advocate AF Hasan Ariff and barrister Rokanuddin Mahmud -- on the petition.

During hearing on the petition, Dr Kamal, Shafique, Hasan Ariff opined that the HC could frame guidelines for appointing its judges until a specific law was formulated, he said.

Rokanuddin told the HC that parliament was the authority to pass a bill for formulating a law for recruitment of its judges, he added.