Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed on Thursday asked Law Minister Anisul Huq to take realistic steps against the High Court judgment that declared the 16th constitution amendment illegal.Tofail made the call taking floor on point of order in Parliament and criticised the court judgment passed on Thursday. Noting that the parliament has sovereign and supreme power, he said, “If the laws passed in the parliament are scrapped by the court does the sovereignty of parliament remain?”
Earlier, Jatiya Party MP Fakhrul Imam initiated the criticism taking floor on the point of order in the House. Subsequently, MPs across the board joined the criticism and demanded statement of the law minister under the rule 300 of the rules of procedure. Delivering his statement, the law minister termed the judgment is illegal adding that the government will file appeal with the Appellate Division against the verdict of the High Court on Sunday or Monday next.
“They (HC) termed it (the 16th amendment) illegal, but it is not illegal at all… it (the judgment) is not maintainable,” he said. “As we believe in the freedom of judiciary, we’ll follow legal process and will lodge appeal with the Appellate Division.
No conspiracy against the democracy will be tolerated,” he said. The minister said judges could be injudicious, but this Parliament can not be so. “We lawmakers are elected with public mandate and enact laws, so we are responsible to people.” Awami League MP Fazlul Karim Selim, Jatiya Party MP Kazi Firoz Rashid and Mujibur Rahman Chunnu, Jasod MP Mainuddin Khan Badal, among others, lambasted the HC for its judgment that turned down the 16th amendment that empowered the Parliament to remove Supreme Court judges for incapacity or misconduct.
