The Supreme Court today fixed Sunday for hearing a petition filed by Erfan Salim, son of Awami League MP Haji Md Salim, for vacating its stay order on the High Court bail for him in a case filed over attacking a navy officer in October last year.

A full bench of the Appellate Division of the SC headed by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain set the date after Erfan's lawyers Abdul Baset Majumdar requested the apex court for early hearing on the petition.

Erfan, now in a Kashimpur jail, submitted the petition to the Appellate Division on April 6 through his lawyers along with the certified copy of the HC verdict that granted him bail in the case.

Citing the petition another lawyer for Erfan Sayed Ahmed Raja told The Daily Star that his client has been languishing in jail for more than five months although the maximum punishment of the charge, for which he has been arrested, is six months' imprisonment.

Erfan's mother died in November last year and his father (Haji Md Salim), has been infected with Covid-19. Therefore, the Appellate Division's stay order on his HC bail needs to be vacated for his release from jail, the lawyer said.

Following a petition filed by the state, the apex court chamber judge on March 28 stayed for four weeks the HC verdict that granted bail to Erfan Salim in the case.

The Supreme Court today upheld a notice issued by the Dhaka University's Bangla department asking its students to keep their faces, including their ears, uncovered during exams and presentations.

The Appellate Division of the SC stayed a High Court order that halted the effectiveness of the notice issued by the department on December 11 last year.

The apex court, however, asked the HC to hear and dispose of the rule in two months. The rule ordered the authorities concerned to explain why the department's decision should not be declared illegal.

A full bench of the Appellate Division headed by Justice Md Nuruzzaman passed the order following a leave to appeal petition filed by the Bangla department challenging the HC order.

Writ petitioners' lawyer Faizullah Faiz told The Daily Star that following the apex court's order, the students under the department can be identified during exams.

Attorney General AM Amin Uddin appeared for DU Bangla department while lawyer Belayet Hossain argued for the writ petitioners during the hearing today.

Responding to a writ petition filed by three students of the department, the HC on March 28 stayed for six months the effectiveness of the notice and also issued a rule asking authorities concerned to explain why the department's decision should not be declared illegal.

The Supreme Court today scrapped a High Court directive that asked the Non-government Teachers' Registration and Certification Authority (NTRCA) to recommend to the authorities concerned to recruit around 2,500 contempt of court petitioners, who qualified relevant exams, as teachers of private educational institutions.

A full bench of the Appellate Division of the SC headed by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain passed the order following several petitions filed by NTRCA, challenging the HC directive.

The grounds on which the apex court passed order could not be known as its written order was not released yet.

However, Contempt petitioners' lawyers Khurshid Alam Khan, Siddique Ullah Miah and Mohiuddin Md Hanif told The Daily Star that the government can recruit teachers to private educational institutions in accordance with law.

Lawyer Fida M Kamal appeared for NTRCA during hearing.

The HC on May 31 directed the NTRCA to recommend in four weeks to the authorities concerned of the government to recruit around 2,500 contempt of court petitioners as teachers of private educational institutions.

The HC came up with the order while hearing on 19 contempt of court petitions filed by around 2,500 qualified candidates in 2019.

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court today upheld the High Court orders that granted anticipatory bail to 65 BNP leaders and activists including Gayeshwar Chandra Roy and Ishraque Hossain in seven cases filed for torching buses in Dhaka on November 12.

A four-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain dismissed seven petitions filed by the state seeking stay on the orders of anticipatory bail.

Read more: Buses torched in Dhaka: 120 BNP men get anticipatory bail in 11 cases

Deputy Attorney General Bishwajit Debnath represented the state while lawyer Md Ruhul Quddus Kazal appeared for the accused BNP leaders and activists during the virtual hearing on the state's petitions.

Police filed the cases with different police stations in Dhaka against few hundred people including the 65 BNP leaders and activists on November 12 and 13 after several buses were torched in the capital on November 12.

Following separate bail petitions, the HC on November 18 granted anticipatory bail to 120 BNP leaders and activists including Gayeshwar Chandra and Ishraque till January 5 in 11 cases.