Supreme Court to hear review petition on 16th amendment today
Following protests by the anti-discrimination student movement demanding the resignation or removal of “partisan” and “corrupt” judges, the High Court division on 16 October decided to temporarily bar 12 judges from hearing cases
The Supreme Court will hear a review petition today on an appeal court ruling that declared the 16th Amendment to the Constitution, which empowers the National Parliament to remove Supreme Court judges, as unconstitutional and void.
The review petition filed by the government has been placed at the top of the appeal division's daily cause list, as per the Supreme Court's website.
Following protests by the anti-discrimination student movement demanding the resignation or removal of "partisan" and "corrupt" judges, the High Court division on 16 October decided to temporarily bar 12 judges from hearing cases.
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The protesters demanded the removal of all judges appointed during the Awami League's term.
In response, Supreme Court Registrar General Aziz Ahmed Bhuiyan informed the protesters that there is a legal process for the removal of judges, but no current law permits it.
He explained that while the previous government had introduced the 16th Amendment to address the issue, the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional.
The review petition challenging this ruling will be heard by a bench led by the Chief Justice today.
The 16th Amendment was passed in January 2014, shortly after the 10th National Assembly elections, and it removed the Supreme Judicial Council's role in the removal of judges.
In May 2016, a High Court bench comprising Justices Moinul Islam Chowdhury, Kazi Reza-ul Haque, and Ashraf Uddin Kamal declared the 16th Amendment unconstitutional in a majority decision.
After receiving the full copy of the judgment, the state filed an appeal to the Appellate Division in January 2017.
In July 2017, a seven-judge Appellate Division bench led by then Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha upheld the High Court's ruling. The full judgment was published in August 2017.
Later, in December 2017, the government filed a review petition with the Appellate Division, seeking the reinstatement of the 16th Amendment.
Lawyers believe that resolving this review petition is crucial for addressing complaints against Supreme Court judges, as the current legal framework provides no alternative mechanism for their removal.
