The High Court on Thursday asked the government to explain the constitutionality of a rule following which locked docks were established in every courtroom in the country in 2009 to prevent escape of the accused.
The bench of Justice Mustafa Zaman Islam and Justice SM Masud Hossain Dolon issued the rule after hearing a petition filed by 10 Supreme Court lawyers in the public interest.
They challenged the legality of the Rule 82 of the Criminal Rules and Order (Practice and Procedure of Subordinate Courts), 2009, that was framed by the Supreme Court in 2009 empowering courts to establish high security locked docks in the sidewalls of each courtroom, replacing the open docks made of wood.
Petitioners鈥� lawyer Mohammad Shishir Manir told the court that high-security docks are enclosed by irons up to the ceiling.
Shishir said that the Supreme Court in 2009 framed the Rule 82 of the Criminal Rules and Order (Practice and Procedure of Subordinate Courts) violating the Article 35(5) of the constitution.
鈥楴o person shall be subjected to torture or cruelty, inhuman or degrading punishment or treatment,鈥� according to the article.
The petition was filed against the backdrop of putting Nobel Laureate professor Muhammad Yunus in the locked dock on June 2 during the court proceedings of a case filed against him under the Money Laundering Prevention Act.
Yunus described the experience as 鈥榩art of a cursed life鈥�.
Yunus鈥� case was heard by Dhaka鈥檚 Special Judge Court-4 Judge Syed Arafat Hossain, who set 12 June for passing the order if the money laundering charges would be framed or not.
The 10 petitioners are GM Muzahidur Rahman, Mohammad Noab Ali, Mohammad Saddam Hossen, Abdullah Sadiq, Mizanul Hoque, Muzahidul Islam, Mesbah Uddin, Zobaidul Islam, Azim Uddin Patwary and Sazzad Sarwar.
