The High Court on Monday disposed of a writ petition that challenged the legality of the Supreme Judicial Appointment Council, formed by the interim government to recommend appointments of Supreme Court judges.
The bench of Justice Md Akram Hossain Chowdhury and Justice Debasish Roy Chowdhury disposed of the petition with observation, and without issuing a rule.
The court said that it would deliver its observation in the written order to be released shortly.
Additional attorney general Aneek R Haque, opposing the petition on behalf of the state, told 抖阴精品 that there was no legal bar to the council functioning and recommending appointments of Supreme Court judges.
The petition was filed in February by lawyer Md Ajmol Hossain Khokon, a member of the convening committee of the Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Forum, a platform of pro-BNP lawyers.
Senior lawyer and Bangladesh Bar Council vice-chairman Zainul Abedin, appearing for the petitioner, argued that the Supreme Judicial Appointment Ordinance 2025鈥檚 imposition of a minimum age requirement of 45 years to qualify for appointment contradicts the constitutional provision, which only requires 10 years of legal practice as an advocate or judicial officer.
Zainul contended that setting a minimum age of 45 years effectively introduced a new qualification standard without amending the constitution, a move the interim government has no mandate to undertake.
In response, Aneek argued that the 45-year age requirement was an additional qualification and did not conflict with the constitution鈥檚 provision of 10 years of practice experience.
He maintained that the council was established to democratise and bring transparency to the judicial appointment process as part of the interim government鈥檚 reform initiatives.
Aneek further alleged that the opposition to the council, primarily by BNP-aligned lawyers, was motivated by political interests, as they sought to reserve the power to appoint judges of their choice upon returning to office.
Zainul said that the constitution stipulates that candidates must have at least 10 years of legal practice to be eligible for appointment as High Court judges but does not prescribe a minimum age.
He argued that the council unlawfully created two categories of candidates, thereby introducing a classification not recognised by the constitution.
He pointed out that the council lacked representation from elected bodies such as the Supreme Court Bar Association and the Bangladesh Bar Council.
The chief justice leads the seven members of the council. Six others are the senior-most judge of the Appellate Division, two senior-most High Court judges, one elevated from the bar and the other from the lower judiciary, a retired Appellate Division judge and a law professor nominated by the council鈥檚 chief, and the attorney general, who serves as the ex-officio chairman of the Bangladesh Bar Council.
The ordinance establishing the council was promulgated by the president upon the recommendation of a constitutional and judicial reform commission.
It aligns with Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed鈥檚 judicial reform roadmap and fulfills a longstanding constitutional requirement introduced by the Fifth Amendment in 1978.
Pro-BNP lawyers Badruddoza Badal, Kayser Kamal, and Jamaat-affiliated lawyer Mohammad Shishir Manir also opposed the writ petition.
