Police will not be involved in investigations, attorney service will handle cases

The current interim government has formed six reform commissions for state reforms. One of them is the Judiciary Reform Commission. Although the deadline for completing the work of this commission was set on Friday, January 3, the government issued a notification on the last day, extending it to January 31. However, it is known that the Judiciary Reform Commission has prepared several draft recommendations within the stipulated time. Which have been submitted to the concerned department as a preliminary report.

According to the commission's sources, the draft recommendation has made recommendations regarding the process of appointing judges to the High Court division, necessary disciplinary measures in the case of appointment, and rules for removal.

At the same time, it has been said to increase the number of High Court divisions at the divisional level and subordinate courts at the upazila level by decentralizing the High Court division and subordinate courts. The commission has made an important recommendation for investigating the case. It states that in addition to forming a separate investigation agency instead of the police to investigate cases, it is necessary to establish a separate attorney service to appoint permanent lawyers to handle cases on behalf of the state. Because false cases and harassment are being used by police to harass the opposition are frequent in the country.

On top of this, there is corruption among some members of the police, which there are not enough measures to prevent. The manpower deployed in the investigation agency will be completely separate from the police force. Their recruitment, conditions of service, control, budget, infrastructure and ancillary matters will be under an independent organization and institutional structure. The investigation agency will start working only after the case is filed. However, in urgent cases and considering the complexity and importance of the incident, the police can take the assistance of the investigation agency as part of a possible investigation even before filing a formal case. From the first stage of the investigation, the investigation officer will conduct the investigation under the supervision of the concerned attorney or prosecutor. There will be a specific division of work between the police department and the investigation agency. For this purpose, the relevant laws should be amended and a new law with appropriate provisions should be made. It also said, "Not only the police station, but also the DB, PBI and CID currently investigate cases.

These organizations are also specialized units of the police. Therefore, it is necessary to form a separate investigation agency instead of these forces." In this regard, retired High Court Justice Emdadul Haque, a member of the Judicial Reform Commission, told Views Bangladesh, "A preliminary report has been submitted recommending the formation of a separate investigation agency instead of the police, DB, CID and PBI to investigate any complaint or case. In addition, steps have been taken to ensure that trial candidates receive justice in a short time and at a low cost. In addition, the commission has recommended several issues including the activities of the reform commission, the appointment of permanent lawyers to handle cases for the state, separate attorney services, financial independence of the judiciary, and ensuring an adequate budget. The commission has also recommended amendments to the syllabus of the lawyer recruitment examination, inclusion of some necessary laws and expansion of the syllabus, establishment of a lawyer training institute by the Bar Council and provision of six-month training for newly recruited lawyers, reform of the Bar Council Order 1972, and increase in the membership of the Enrollment Committee.' He said, 'The government has clearly stated its policy in the notification. The commission is working accordingly.' Stating that the commission has already completed eighty percent of its work, he said, 'There is some pending official work. More work needs to be done on some reforms related to the judicial courts.

Discussions are still ongoing on what the method and criteria for appointing judges to the High Court division will be. We are considering possible aspects of reform by collecting information on the prevailing laws of the country and the methods prevailing in other countries with similar legal systems. We will give a final report once these are completed. For this, we have taken time till January 31. I hope the Judicial Reform Commission will complete all the work within this time.’

In this regard, Barrister Badruddoza Badal, a senior lawyer of the Supreme Court, told Views Bangladesh, ‘The proposal made by the Judicial Reform Commission to form a separate investigation agency instead of the police to investigate cases and to appoint permanent lawyers to handle cases on behalf of the state is very important for justice. I think this will reduce the suffering of people seeking justice. In addition, their recommendations for appointing judges and lawyers in the High Court division will also be important for the judiciary. In this regard, the current government must be sincere in implementing the recommendations correctly.’

Barrister Kaiser Kamal, a lawyer of the Supreme Court and BNP’s legal affairs secretary, told Views Bangladesh, ‘The proposal to form a separate investigation agency instead of the police to investigate cases is definitely good. We have seen how people of opposing views were harassed by every unit of the police force during the previous government. The common people were not left out either. Therefore, this proposal is important. Besides, the recommendations for six-month training for newly appointed lawyers, reform of the Bar Council Order 1972 and increase in the membership of the Enrollment Committee will also be beneficial for the judiciary. However, it remains to be seen how much these recommendations will be implemented.’

The Judiciary Committee was formed on October 4, headed by former Supreme Court Appellate Division Justice Shah Abu Naeem Mominur Rahman.