Dhaka – Chief Justice (CJ) Surendra Kumar Sinha Sunday slammed district judges for not conducting their judicial function properly and expected that the district judges would attend their courts in time and remain engaged in the judicial function for their entire office time.“I heard some district judges did not sit in the courtrooms after launch break, which is not acceptable at all,” the CJ warned the judges while addressing the second day of the national judicial conference at the Supreme Court auditorium.
The CJ also slammed some district judges for using other judges’ vehicles for travelling outside Dhaka without the permission of the authorities concerned. Using cars of other courts’ judges is not acceptable at all, he warned the judges.
Some districts judges started to come in Dhaka after launch break on Thursday while they return their workplaces in the afternoon on Sunday after meeting with their families in Dhaka, which is not acceptable, he noted.
Relating to the backlog of cases, the CJ said that the backlog of cases and long delay in their disposal were big hurdles to the people’s access to justice.
“This “burden” can make the management of courts motionless and may increase the case disposal cost,” he noted.
The CJ said that there were 27 lakh cases pending with the lower courts across the country at present for disposal.
“So, we must get rid of the case backlog and trial delay. For that, the judges have to give up the culture of wasting time,” the CJ said.
“This (wasting time in trial process) may make the justice seekers to lose their faith on the rule of law and make them impatient … we have to leave this culture for good,” the CJ noted.
“I know you have to work with many limitations including lack of infrastructure against the growing expectations for justice. You have to remember that it is a citizen’s constitutional right to get justice without any delay and at minimum cost and we are oath bound to ensure this right of the citizens’ and no limitations can be accepted as an excuse in this regard,” the CJ said.
Meanwhile, discussions were held on subjects like NGO’s role in government legal aid activities, problems in implementing Women & Children Repression Prevention Act-2000, alternative dispute resolution and the solutions and things to do in increasing efficiency of court administration.
Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha inaugurated the two-day event at Bangabandhu International Conference Center in the capital on Saturday. – Staff Reporter
