Bill placed to amend CrPC
It will empower govt to shift judicial magistrate's courts to outside district headquarters
The government placed a bill in parliament yesterday to amend the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) 1898 seeking power to shift judicial magistrate's courts outside district headquarters.
The move, however, runs counter to constitutional provisions as the government can no longer seek such authority after separation of the judiciary in 2007, jurist Shahdeen Malik said.
“It is the Supreme Court which now enjoys the power to shift judicial magistrate's courts anywhere. The government may only make recommendation to the Supreme Court for shifting any magistrate's court.” Shahdeen told The Daily Star yesterday. But the proposed amendment said the government may, by general or special order in the official Gazette, direct at what place or places the courts of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate and other judicial magistrates shall hold their sittings.
State Minister for Law Qamrul Islam, who piloted the bill on behalf of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Shafique Ahmed, however, argued that it is necessary to shift judicial magistrates' courts outside district headquarters considering the huge number of cases, transport system and people's demand.
Getting justice in an easy way is people's constitutional right. But there is no provision in the Code of Criminal Procedure to shift courts outside district headquarters, Qamrul said.
Therefore, introducing a provision for shifting courts is needed. If the proposal is made a law, people will be benefited, he said.
Shahdeen mentioned that the Code of Criminal Procedure was made during the British rule conferring the power to shift courts on the government. But the entire situation has been changed after separation of the judiciary in 2007, he said.
Qamrul placed another bill, on behalf of the law minister, seeking to amend the International Crimes (Tribunals) Act 1973 for transferring cases from one tribunal to another.
The government, however, has already made the amendment to the law through an ordinance. Now, it placed the bill for continuation of the change since effectiveness of the ordinance will end this month.
And Land Minister Rezaul Karim Hira placed in the House a bill seeking to amend the Vested Property Return Act 2001 for increasing the timeframe for making a list of returnable vested property, publishing the list and completing other procedures.
All the three bills were sent to the parliamentary standing committee the on ministries concerned for scrutiny.
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