SC won’t rehear most of 168 settled cases

The Supreme Court today said it will not rehear most of the 168 cases, in which former chief justice Md Muzammel Hossain and former SC judge Justice AHM Shamsuddin Choudhury Manik wrote judgments and orders after their retirement.

The court may rehear few of the cases if it feels necessary, a four-member bench of the Appellate Division led by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha said.

The judgements and orders of all the 168 cases will remain upheld, the bench said.

While passing the order, the chief justice said full text of the judgements and orders will be released in a month.

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The apex court decided to rehear the cases last month, about three months after the CJ said that writing of judgments or orders after retirement was unconstitutional.

On the occasion of the first anniversary of his taking office, the CJ in a message on January 19 said some judges made unusual delays in writing verdicts while others continued to do it long after their retirement, “which goes against the law and the constitution”.

Former chief justice Muzammel retired on January 16 last year and Justice Manik on October 1.

The 168 cases include an appeal regarding the Warrant of Precedence of the republic, SC sources said.

On January 11 last year, the SC disposed of “with expunction, modification, observation and findings” the appeal against a 2010 High Court order that declared illegal and void the existing Warrant of Precedence, formulated in 1986 and revised in 2008.

A five-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by the then chief justice Md Muzammel Hossain passed the short verdict, now available on the SC website.

The Warrant of Precedence is used for all government purposes including ceremonial occasions.