The leave petition of Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha scoffs at the allegation of BNP leaders' claim that he was forced to go on leave,
Justice Sinha in his letter to the President has said it clearly that he had been suffering from cancer and some other complications due to which he sought leave from office.
"Previously I had been suffering from cancer for a long time. Now I am suffering from different kinds of physical complications. I need rest to regain my health. So I want to enjoy 30-day leave from November 1," reads the October 2 letter, which was signed by the Chief Justice addressing the President.
Another letter issued by the Registrar General's office of the Supreme Court also mentioned the illness of Justice Sinha behind his seeking leave. The Registrar's office also attached a copy of the Chief Justices leave petition with its letter and forwarded to the Law Ministry.
The letter, signed by Supreme Court Registrar Zakir Hossain, informed the Law Ministry about the necessity of initiating process to appoint Justice Wahab Mia as the Acting Chief Justice.
"It is necessary for the President to kindly pass an order for the Senior Most Appellate Division judge Justice Md Abdul Wahab to act as Chief Justice of Bangladesh," says the letter.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) still suspects that Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha was forced to go on leave.
SCBA President Zainul Abedin on Wednesday told journalists that the lawyers and judges are concerned about the situation. Countering him, Attorney General Mahbubey Alam said, "There is nothing to be worried. Anybody might be sick and it is normal to seek leave."
He added that the entire judiciary including the Supreme Court is functioning normally.
Meanwhile, Law Minister Anisul Huq urged all to refrain from doing politics with the sickness of Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha.
"He is sick. There is nothing here to politicise," the Law Minister said in a briefing at his office on Wednesday.
About BNP's claim that the Chief Justice was forced to go on leave, the Minister termed it unfortunate.
Asked about the whereabouts of SK Sinha, he said, "As far as I know, he's staying in his residence and he's sick. A doctor went to visit him at his residence yesterday (Tuesday) and is scheduled to visit today (Wednesday)."
Replying to another query as to why no one on behalf of the government visited the 'ailing' Chief Justice, Anisul said, "I've contacted the physician and I'll definitely visit him when I'm in a position to go there. A cancer patient needs more time to be cured. We all know this."
Asked why the Chief Justice did not go to hospital, he described it as his personal matter. "I can't tell you anything about this. I can just tell you I'll visit him soon."
The Law Minister read out the letter of leave which was written to the President by the Chief Justice. He outright rejected with an "absolutely not" when asked if the Chief Justice was under house arrest.
The Law Minister referred to a provision of article 97 of the constitution while talking on giving responsibility of Acting Chief Justice to Justice Md Abdul Wahhab Miah, and said, "You can't leave the post of Chief Justice vacant."
Binning a question about the resignation of the Chief Justice, Anisul said, "He has not filed resignation letter yet. I don't want to get into such speculation and I hope his sickness will not turn so bad that he would be forced to file his resignation letter. I hope he will recover."
The Law Minister also said there is no void in the judiciary following the leave of the Chief Justice, adding, both the Appellate Division and the High Court Division at the Supreme Court are functioning properly as an Acting Chief Justice took the charge.
The Minister also read out the letter of the Chief Justice, which had sent to the President.
Responding to another query about the Chief Justice's absence in Tuesday's Supreme Court programme, Anisul posed a counter question, "Is it my responsibility to explain the matter? He went to his office. Please tell me whether the government made any obstruction to the programme."
"After knowing about the sickness and leave of the Chief Justice, the government took constitutional steps and we've received the forwarding letter from the SC registrar general. The government appointed an acting Chief Justice as the post should not remain vacant. What is the need to do politics here?
Asked about the acting Chief Justice's controversial role in a war crimes case, the Minister said, "It's clearly stated in section 97 of the Constitution that the senior-most judge of the Appellate Division should be appointed as the Chief Justice. It is nowhere mentioned in the Constitution that a controversial person shouldn't be appointed the Chief Justice."
