Special Correspondent :
The pro-Awami League lawyers and ruling party stalwarts are still engaged in issuing rigid statements over the verdict of the 16th Amendment to the Constitution allegedly to create pressure on the judiciary despite irresponsive mood of the county’s apex court.
In line with ruling party’s strategy, the Bangabandhu Ainjibi Parishad on Sunday in a protest rally at south hall of Supreme Court Bar Association demanded cancellation of the whole 16th Amendment verdict.
“We demand cancellation of the verdict, including suo moto expunction of the irrelevant remarks in the observation over 16th Amendment to the Constitution. The court will be closed from August 24 for Eid-ul Azha vacation. If our demands are not fulfilled before that time, we’ll go for a greater movement after the court opens,” said, Barrister Fazle Noor Tapas, member-secretary of Awami Ainjibi Parishad.
Issuing a note of warning, Barrister Tapas further said, “In that situation, it could be turned into a one-point demand at that time. So, I do request Chief Justice and other justices who were involved in having down the verdict to meet our demand taking the overall situation under consideration.”
“I’m getting stunned whenever going through the verdict. I also express my condemnation about the arguments that were given against the religion. It’s very awful to irrelevantly drag the religious matters in the verdict. We’ll not tolerate anything excessive about the religion. We demand expunction of the remarks over Bangabandhu and parliament members,” he said.
Echoing the same, Awami League’s Law Affairs Secretary SM Rezaul Karim said: “It’s totally unaccepted and unwanted in which way remarks were passed in the observation about Bangabandhu and lawmakers. Expunction is not enough …we demand total cancellation of the verdict.”
In the same way, Ministers are also issuing statement against the Supreme Court with an intention to keep the apex court under pressure.
“The apex court of the country has undermined the nation by delivering its verdict on the 16th Amendment. The judiciary has made the parliament an opponent. They (Supreme Court) have also done an unconstitutional work by terming the parliament immature,” veteran Awami League leader and Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed said yesterday while addressing a seminar at National Press Club.
In the same way, Awami Jubo League Chairman Omar Faruk Chowdhury has harsly criticised the verdict of Supreme Court saying that Chief Justice SK Sinha has turned into a ghost from the God through delivering the judgment.
The Ganotantrick Ainjibi Samity, however, on Sunday alleged that ruling party leaders and ministers were issuing immaterial statements targeting the 16th Amendment verdict.
“How the ministers are giving statements over the verdict? How could they say the Chief Justice and other justices were appointed under political consideration? What is the meaning of this? …They are admitting that entire apex court and the judiciary have been politicized by them!” Subrata Roy Chowdhury, President of Ganotantrick Ainjibi Samity, told a press conference at Supreme Court Bar Association auditorium.
Meanwhile, opposition BNP yesterday raised allegation that a “rumour” is now running fast among the countrymen about creating pressure on the Chief Justice SK Sinha for his resignation.
“Awami League has demanded expunction the remarks that were given in the verdict’s observation, which is almost legally impossible. There is also no scope to expunge it. That’s the Constitution what the Supreme Court says. The main tasks of the judges are to explain in detail to make the Constitution clear to all,” BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said on Sunday.
