Law Minister Anisul Huq today said some new judges will be appointed to both the Appellate and High Court divisions of the Supreme Court within the first week of February.

He, however, did not disclose the names and numbers of the people who will be appointed as judges.

“We will take steps to appoint sufficient judges to the Supreme Court,” Anisul Huqs aid adding that the new judges will be appointed by the end of this month within first week of February.

The law minister said this while talking to reporters after attending as the chief guest to a training programme for the lower court judges at the Judicial Administration Training Institute in Dhaka.

Replying to a question about the appointment of the new chief justice, he said that the president will decide when and who will be appointed as the new CJ.

Replying to another query, the minister said a gazette notification will be issued within this month on the recruitment of new lower court judges who have been selected through the 10th Bangladesh Judicial Service Commission (BJSC).

Law ministry sources said the process for the appointment of 166 lower court judges through the BJSC is at the final stage.

The post of the chief justice has been lying vacant since November 10 last year when the then CJ Surendra Kumar Sinha resigned.

Besides, six posts of Appellate Division including the CJ are now vacant.

Around 400 posts of lower court judges are also remaining vacant.