AB Party calls for more comprehensive judicial reforms

The Amar Bangladesh Party (AB Party) has praised the government for its recent “Judicial Appointment Ordinance 2025”. However, the party has termed it as "insufficient"` to address the systemic backlog of over 4 million pending cases and ensure justice for all.

Addressing a press conference at the party’s central office in the capital, Zubair Ahmed Bhuiyan, AB party joint general secretary, provided detailed evaluations and recommendations.

Asaduzzaman Fuaad, general secretary of the AB Party, also recalled the 15 point judicial regime announced early October 2024.

They said AB Party welcomed the Judicial Appointment Ordinance, which aims to bring transparency and accountability to appointing judges to higher courts. The party also appreciated recent proposals for a separate Supreme Court Secretariat and a permanent attorney service.

However, they also placed a set of proposals for broader reforms including a minimum 5 years of legal experience for judicial appointments to lower courts, inclusion of public representatives in the judicial appointment process to balance legal perspectives with public interests and increasing quorum members for appellate division appointments from two to five.

They also stressed resolving the 4 million pending cases by introducing time limits for appeals, mandatory alternative dispute resolution mechanisms down to union and sub-district levels, allocation of litigation costs to the losing party, and a criminal case review commission to tackle false and frivolous cases.

AB Party leaders also expressed concerns over political influence in courts. They urged for banning political rallies, banners, and slogans within court premises to uphold judicial dignity. They vowed for separate bar associations from court campuses to prevent undue political interference.

The party warned that the proposed age limit for judicial appointments could face constitutional challenges and stressed prioritizing merit, integrity, and experience. The party leaders highlighted the need for courts to focus on investigation-driven criminal justice rather than police dominance.