SC to hear appeal against verdict over ‘warrant of precedence’

The Supreme Court will hear the appeal against the verdict over the ‘warrant of precedence’ of holders of important constitutional offices of the state. The Appellate Division has set 4 November to hear the appeal.

The Appellate Division has granted leave to appeal (permission to appeal) after hearing an appeal seeking a review of a verdict it delivered a decade ago, which concerned placing constitutional office holders of the state higher up in the order of precedence and priority.

A six-member Appellate Division bench headed by senior justice Md Ashfaqul Islam passed the order on Thursday.

The court said, “The leave has been granted. The appeal hearing will be held on 4 November. It will be on top of the cause list that day.”

After the hearing on the appeal seeking a review of the Appellate Division's verdict concluded on 30 July, the Appellate Division scheduled a date for the order. Following this, the matter was listed at top of the Appellate Division's cause list for the order today.

Earlier, the Appellate Division delivered a verdict on 11 January 2015 after amending the warrant of precedence. The full verdict was later published on 10 November 2016.

The ruling stipulated that the constitutional office-holders of the state should be placed higher in the order of precedence and given priority; additionally, it elevated the rank of district judges by eight steps, equating them with secretaries.

The Appellate Division’s observation in the verdict noted that the chief justice’s rank should be elevated by one step, equating it with that of the speaker of the national parliament, and that other distinguished figures of the state—recipients of the Swadhinata Padak, Ekushey Padak, and freedom fighters who were awarded the Bir Uttam for their role in the liberation war—should be appropriately included in the order of precedence.

The cabinet secretary and the then chairman of the Public Service Commission (PSC) filed separate appeals in 2017 seeking a review of that verdict.

In the review petitions, 90 deputy attorney generals and assistant attorney generals of the state intervened in support. The hearings on the review petitions began on 27 April and concluded on 30 July.

In the hearing, senior advocate Salah Uddin Dolon represented the cabinet secretary, who filed the review petition.

On behalf of the writ petitioners, senior advocates Prabir Niyogi and Nihad Kabir participated, while senior advocate Ahsanul Karim represented the deputy attorney generals and assistant attorney generals.

According to the Rules of Business of the Cabinet Division, the Warrant of Precedence was formulated in 1986. After the President’s approval, it was issued on 11 September of the same year and has since been amended several times.

The most recent amendment was made in December 2003. In creating this revised Warrant of Precedence, constitutional positions and posts recognised and defined by the Constitution were placed below the administrative cadre officers.

Citing this, Md Ataur Rahman, then secretary general of the Bangladesh Judicial Service Association, filed a writ petition in 2006 challenging its validity.

After the final hearing of the writ petition, the High Court declared the 1986 Warrant of Precedence (as amended) illegal and void, issuing eight directives on 4 February 2010.

The state appealed the High Court verdict in 2011. Following the hearing of this appeal, the Appellate Division delivered its verdict on 11 January 2015. In the context of the 2017 review petition, leave has now been granted. The hearing on the appeal is scheduled for 4 November.