Gulam Rabbani :
A large number of the lawyers are raising their voice through different ways demanding resuming regular activities of the higher and lower judiciary. They think that the litigants are not getting proper justice from the virtual courts and the most of the lawyers cannot take part in the trial proceedings in such courts due to technical problems.
The Supreme Court administration started the operation of the virtual courts at one stage of the shutdown which was introduced in the wake of coronvirus pandemic. The activities of the virtual courts are very limited for the large number of lawyers for proceeding their cases.
The virtual courts of the lower judiciary are hearing only some particular matters and the High
Court Division of the Supreme Court has only 11 benches for dealing with cases. This limited version of the judiciary is very much insufficient for the large number of cases. So a portion of the lawyers are demanding to the regular judicial activities to resume.
Senior Jurist Khandker Mahbub Hossain said, “There is no certainty as to when this coronavirus pandemic will end. So the judicial activities cannot be stopped for an indefinite period. The litigants as well as the lawyers are incurring losses. Considering the matter, the Chief Justice could take immediate steps to reopen the court’s regular activities.”
He also said, “The litigants are not getting proper justice from the virtual courts and the most of the lawyers cannot take part in the trial proceedings in such courts as the process has very much complexity. So running virtual courts is only the wasting of government money.”
The Supreme Court authority can formulate a guideline for the lawyers who will come to the court for dealing with the cases, added the lawyer.
Supreme Court lawyer Eunus Ali Akond on June 1 this year filed a writ petition with the High Court challenging the Chief Justice’s decision to run virtual activities of the courts across the country. In the petition, the lawyer prayed to the High Court to direct the authorities concerned to resume the courts’ regular activities across the country.
Hundreds of lawyers of the Dhaka Bar Association on May 31 this year staged demonstrations on the bar premises in demand of resuming the regular court proceedings instead of virtual system. Before the demonstration, more than three hundred lawyers participated in a mass signature program in support of resuming the regular court activities.
The lawyers on that day alleged that the virtual courts hear only the bail petitions, but other judicial activities like surrender of an accused, obtaining testimony of a witness, filing of criminal cases have no access to the virtual courts which is causing a huge loss to the lawyers.
Besides, the lawyers are facing many problems in submitting bail applications in the virtual courts due to technical faults, they also alleged.
But Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) President Advocate AM Amin Uddin said that they did not have any plan to request the Supreme Court authority or the Chief Justice for starting the regular judicial activities in the higher or lower judiciary.
He said, “Coronavirus pandemic is going on. We have to follow the health guidelines strictly at this time. Whether the court will open or not is entirely a matter for the Supreme Court administration. We don’t want to take any risk.”
Replying to a query he said, “Other government offices have been opened already and 25 per cent manpower has been asked to be present there. But when the court will be opened, all the lawyers will come here. It cannot be controlled. Who will take the risk if someone is infected by the Covid-19 virus?”
Supreme Court Bar Association Secretary Barrister Ruhul Quddus Kazal said that the SCBA leaders were also considering the demand of some lawyers for starting regular judicial activities in the Supreme Court.
He said, “Many of our lawyers are not used to work with the virtual system of filing and hearing of the cases. Besides, there are not sufficient virtual courts to meet the demand of the so many lawyers. So we have to think of alternative ways.”
Regular activities of all courts across the country, including the Appellate and High Court Division, have been suspended since March 26 due to the ongoing nationwide shutdown amid the coronavirus outbreak.
The closure is scheduled to stay till June 15. But in the meantime the Appellate Division has already noticed that it will conduct judicial functions till June 30 through virtual system only, without physical presence, in order to contain the coronavirus outbreak.
