Govt still studying 16th amendment verdict: Law minister

The government is still carefully studying the Appellate Division’s verdict that cancelled the 16th constitutional amendment, the law minister has said.

Staff Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 17 Sept 2017, 11:54 AM
Updated : 17 Sept 2017, 11:54 AM

A formal letter will be sent to the attorney general for starting a review petition against the verdict as per a decision adopted in parliament, Anisul Huq said as he replied to questions by reporters during a programme on Sunday.

The parliament on Wednesday passed a proposal for review, the last-ditch legal move to overturn the verdict that took away MPs’ powers to sack top judges.

“The courts do not have the jurisdiction to amend the constitution.  It sets the definitions for laws when they are breached,” Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said in parliament before it passed the proposal in voice vote.

The MPs discussed ‘inconsistencies’ in the top court’s verdict and criticised Chief Justice SK Sinha for some of his observations in the 799-page document.

The Awami League-led government in 2014 passed the 16th amendment to return to parliament the powers to sack judges for misconduct or incapacity.

The Appellate Division this year upheld a High Court verdict that annulled the amendment for contradicting the constitution and set the foundation for a return of the Supreme Judicial Council, a system introduced during a past military rule.

The verdict, ever since its full copy was published on Aug 1, has sparked debates in various platforms.