No interference in judiciary: law minister

The law minister, Anisul Huq, on Sunday said that their government never interfered in the judiciary as they believed in the rule of law.
The executive branch of the state thoroughly goes by the Article 116 of the constitution that ensures independence of the judges in the dispensation of justice, he said at a programme at Bangla Academy organised by a non-governmental organisation to award 10 human rights defenders.
The minister made remarks a day after chief justice SK Sinha on Saturday urged the government to immediately amend Articles 116 and 116A of the constitution saying that the judiciary faced difficulties to establish rule of law because of the provisions stipulated in the existing articles.
The minister said that he read the chief justice’s statement in newspapers. ‘I think that his statement has not been appeared completely and to understand his statement properly, I have already requested Supreme Court officials to supply his written statement.’
The chief justice said the Articles 116 and 116A are ‘contrary to the principles’ of the original constitution adopted in 1972.
The existing Article 116 empowers the president with the authority to control and supervise the lower judiciary in consultation with the Supreme Court.
The chief justice urged the government to reinstate the original Article 116 that empowered the Supreme Court with the absolute authority over the lower judiciary.
The law minister also said that the perpetrators of the attacks on Hindus and Santals at Nasirnagar and Gobindaganj respectively would be identified and brought to book.
He claimed that the government was ‘really sincere’ in protecting human rights and determined to make the National Human Rights Commission more ‘powerful’.
Rights activist Sultana Kamal said that the government achieved success in different issues except human rights.
She said that those who were vocal to protect environment and the rights of people were branded as ‘anti-state.’
The law minister also said that the government was now drafting a law to confiscate assets of war criminals.

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