The Judicial Reform Commission has recommended banning political activities in the court premises in order to keep the judiciary impartial, independent and dynamic and transparent.
The commission also recommended that the country's bar associations must be freed from political influence. It also called for putting a stop to using them as a tool to implement the objectives of political parties.
On October 3 last year, the interim government formed an eight-member Judiciary Reform Commission headed by former Appellate Division Justice Shah Abu Naeem Mominur Rahman to propose necessary reforms in the judiciary.
Since then, the commission has undertaken various activities including on-site visits to various courts and exchange of views. After lengthy discussions and reviews, the commission recently submitted its final report to the Chief Advisor Dr Muhammad Yunus giving some valuable recommendations keeping the judiciary neutral and free it from political influence,
The Commission's report states that lawyers must refrain from political activities that disrupt the normal judicial activities of the court. Such programmes or activities in court premises should be included as professional misconduct and disciplinary action should be taken in this regard through the Bar Council.
"It is necessary to formulate necessary laws to control processions, gatherings, sit-ins, siege programmes, etc. in court premises so that the judiciary could be kept out of politics and impartial and independent," the report said.
Regarding the politics of judges, the report says that judges must be free from all kinds of political influence and involvement. It is necessary to consider showing political loyalty or expressing political views as misconduct and take strict disciplinary action in accordance with the relevant code of conduct against them, if anyone to be found.
The report of the Judicial Reform Commission says that the exercise of political influence is an obstacle to establishing an effective and impartial judicial system in Bangladesh. Therefore, it is essential to keep the judiciary free from political influence to establish public trust in the judiciary and ensure justice.
Barrister Tanim Hossain Shawon, one of the members of the Judicial Reform Commission, said that the commission believes that the judiciary should be kept out of political influence. For this, political parties should pledge not to interfere in the Bar Association elections and not to keep the lawyers' organization as a branch of a political party. Political pressure in the appointment of judges, political bias in giving verdicts, and the presence of political activities inside or on the court premises should be stopped.
The commission's report says that bar associations often become a platform for power struggles between major political parties. This undermines professional impartiality. In some cases, judges directly show loyalty to political parties and speak in favour of the party, Even court rulings or comments reveal political views or sympathy for a particular party.
Supreme Court Bar Association President Barrister AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon said, "We also don't want politics in court and political influence in the judiciary. The issue of not having a panel in the Bar Association elections is also in the election code of conduct. Lawyers come to the court to help people. So I also think that there should be no excessive politics here.'
Retired Senior District and Sessions Judge Dr. Shahjahan Saju said, 'This is a good initiative. It will be a positive step for the litigants in getting justice. Such steps have been taken before. Therefore, proper implementation is the main thing. If the judiciary is free from political interference, justice will be ensured for the litigants smoothly, he added.
