High Court questions contractual appointment of law secretary

The High Court has asked the government why the contractual appointment of Law Secretary Abu Saleh Sk Md Zahirul Haque and the gazette on the appointment will not be declared unlawful.

A High Court bench issued a rule on Tuesday following a writ petition and set Thursday for the next hearing.

The secretaries to the cabinet, public administration, finance, president's office and PMO, Supreme Court registrar general, and joint secretary (administration-1) of law ministry have been asked to respond to the rule within that day.

Zahirul Haque, who took charge as the law and justice secretary in February 2015, was scheduled to retire on Monday.

The government on Sunday appointed him to the same post on a two-year contract, and he joined the workplace on Monday.

A Supreme Court lawyer, Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman, filed the writ petition on Tuesday morning challenging the 'legitimacy' of Zahirul Haque's contractual appointment.

AJ Mohammad Ali, who argued on behalf of Ashrafuzzaman, said the Supreme Court's consultation is required in appointing judicial service officials following Section 116 of the Constitution, but it was not followed in Zahirul's case.

Law Secretary Abu Saleh Sk Md Zahirul Haque

In addition, no official outside the judicial service can be appointed as law secretary, he argued at the hearing, adding that Zahirul is 'no more in the judicial service'.   

"Even the Appellate Division had said in a verdict that there is no scope of contractual appointment to this post," he said. 

Attorney General Mahbubey Alam, and his deputies Motahar Hossain Saju and Amit Talukder stood for the State.

Attorney General Alam told the media there is no provision on consulting the Supreme Court in such appointments. "Zahirul Haque was not brought from outside the judicial service."  

Referring to Section 5 (3) of the Public Service Retirement Act, the attorney general said, "And the president can appoint any person contractually in public interest, no matter what the other laws say."

He also said the Appellate Division verdict on contractual appointment applies to those who are from outside the corresponding service.