Seven months have already been elapsed since the publication of the final results of 15th Bangladesh Judicial Service (BJS) exams for the recruitment of assistant judges.
As the gazette has not yet been published, 103 candidates provisionally recommended for the post of assistant judge couldn't join.
According to the Bangladesh Judicial Service Commission (BJSC) website, the 15th BJS recruitment circular was published on 12 May last year.
BJSC conducted preliminary and written exams the same year. The viva voce ended on 19 January 2023. The final result was published on 24 January.
A job aspirant who passed the 15th BJS examination told Prothom Alo on the condition of anonymity that it has been almost 16 months since the publication of the recruitment notification and seven months have passed since the publication of the final result.
"But still I did not get the gazette. While the commission completed the exam very early, the time for the written exam was only 25 days from the preliminary exam," the aspirant lamented.
The candidate also added, "After taking a quick test and getting the final recommendation, I thought I would get the job swiftly, so I didn't seek a job elsewhere. But I have been suffering from depression after sitting unemployed for seven months."
Another candidate who was recommended as an assistant judge told Prothom Alo, "On 1 February, law minister Anisul Huq told the parliament that currently 4 million 4 thousand 7 cases are under trial in the country's courts. If the recruitment process is completed at the earliest, we could have played some role in solving at least 103 cases. But I am unable to join the job as the verification process is not completed even after seven long months. Thousands of valuable working hours of the country are being wasted."
Bangladesh Judicial Service Commission supervises assistant judge recruitment process. This commission was formed in 2007 after the separation of judiciary.
Bangladesh Judicial Service Commission, people related to the lower courts and recommended candidates say that one of the reasons for the backlog of cases in the lower courts is the long process of appointing new judges. If the recommended candidates can join the job quickly, this mess will be reduced.
According to BJSC sources, the verification report was completed within two to four months in the 3rd and 4th BJS recruitment. So only for that two BJS recruitment processes were completed in a short time. But since then police verification reports and other processes are taking more time. For this reason recruitment process time is increasing.