Why not forming taskforce to address rights violation by cops: HC

The High Court today asked the government to explain in four weeks as to why it should not be directed to form a permanent taskforce to address the incident of violation of human rights by law enforcers.

The court issued the rule following a writ petition filed by Advocate Salma Ali, executive director of Bangladesh National Women Lawyers Association (BNWLA).

In the rule, the court also asked the government to explain as to why it should not be ordered to adopt a guideline or a policy to restore the confidence of the public on law enforcers.

“The home secretary, inspector general of police, DMP commissioner, deputy commissioner of Dhaka and respective deputy commissioner of DMP have been made respondents to the rule,” Deputy Attorney General Amatul Karim Swapna told The Daily Star.

The HC bench of Justice Farah Mahbub and Justice Kazi Md Ejarul Haque Akanda made the rule after hearing the writ petition.

They issued a directive on the respondents to form a permanent taskforce and to adopt a guideline to restore public confidence in law enforcers.

The petition was submitted centering the police atrocities on the demonstrators who lay seize the DMP commissioner’s office on May 10 protesting sexual harassment on Dhaka University Campus during Pahela Baishakh celebrations.

Earlier, another HC bench directed the government to inform it of actions adopted against the law enforcers who are responsible for assaulting the demonstrator by June 14.