Status of 'Bangla' in legal arena

THE people of Bangladesh have a long history of love and liability towards mother language. The struggle of making Bangla the state Language is one of the rarest incidents of the world history. The main object of our language movement was firm establishment as well as to ensure extensive practice of Bangla language in every sphere of our national life. 

Bangla is mostly used in the lower courts of Bangladesh. The usage of 'Bangla' is yet to be made compulsory in all the courts of Bangladesh including the Supreme Court. Although 62 years have elapsed from the Language Movement and 43 years passed since the independence and several Government office orders have been announced regarding the use of 'Bangla' yet it could not be ascertained in all public sectors. 

Many suggestions were made by the Law Commission in 2011 regarding the 'Bangla Promulgation Act 1987' but no efficacious attempt was taken to materialise it. After the amendment of the Supreme Court (High Court Division) Rules 1973 in 21 November 2012, the opportunity of using 'Bangla' has been created, but hindrances to use Bangla in the Higher Courts were noticed. As a result, English has become an integral language in the decisions of the Higher Courts.

It is accepted by all that, the importance of English must be acknowledged as an international language and also to protect the national interests but never at the sacrifice of the Mother tongue. In addition, the rate of education in Bangladesh is very less.  If the processes of the Higher Court are continued in English not only that the judicial procedures will not be understood but also they will not have the concept of equitable judgment.

When the Higher Court ascertains the death penalty upon the review of the verdict of the Sessions Courts then the afflicted or benefitted party , the complaint or accused whoever it is cannot understand and know that why and for which reason he is sentenced or acquitted. In many cases they have to get the verdict translated by the lawyers on payment of fees. In cases of the lack of honesty and good wishes the complaints have to suffer from cheating and harassment.

In a relevant comparison it is observed that among the three organs of our state i.e. legislative, executive and judiciary, the secretariat of Prime Minister and other ministries are using Bangla language for performing all of their functions. The legislative procedures including the sessions of parliament are also being conducted in Bangla language. But the judiciary along with the Supreme Court and other higher courts, Bangla is not yet used as the only language. 

At present the main problem of not using Bangla is the unwillingness of using this language. In this context, the use of Bangla language in the courts and publication of law books in Bangla should be given equal importance in the court. It is also necessary to translate the books in Bangla upon which the Judges and Lawyers rely on for the explanation of different sections, rules or words of different laws. Bangla Academy and Bar Council may take special initiatives for publishing Law books in Bangla. But prior to doing that one essential thing is to make a complete Dictionary of Legal Terminologies.

Since Law is a specialised subject, there are around ten thousand jargons which are in English. The compilation of these jargons along with translation and some explanation can be exhaustive but not impossible. Absence of any particular guideline, different person are interpreting in different wordings or sentencing which in turn is creating a multi meaningful errors. In this regard a Terminological Committee could be formed in collaboration with the Linguists, Judges and Lawyers.

It is the duty of all concerned to remove the concept that it is difficult and almost impossible to conduct the court functions in Bangla. All those affiliated with the courts have to play their respective roles in this regard. Initially, it may seem impossible to present all the functions of the Court in Bangla but once the habit of conducting suits in Bangla come into existence the usage of Bangla would gradually become developed, rectified, correct, formal and appropriate.

The concern that the communications of Bangladesh with abroad (regarding the education and practices of laws) would be loosened or separated is futile. The concern has turned erroneous in many counties having less population than Bangladesh like:Nepal, Japan, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark etc. If Bangla as the State language is not used as the language of trial in the independent judicial system, the people in general would grope into the darkness of deprivation. 

It is necessary to pay attention to the language of laws if the rule of law is needed to be established. If the concerned judges and lawyers take initiatives then although it might be difficult at the commencement to apply Bangla language in Courts but it would not be impossible at the end. It is therefore urgent to introduce Bangla in Courts in order to show respect to the martyrs of the Language Movement besides establishing equitable justice and ensuring easier comprehension.

The Writer is Associate Professor of Law, Bangladesh Open University.