DHAKA, June 29, 2020 (BSS) – Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Anisul Huq today said the government is intending to convert the temporary virtual court ordinance to a permanent law.
“…as an immediate first step, we intend to convert the temporary ordinance on the virtual court to a permanent law, which will then be operated in the post-COVID time. We discussed the urgency of this law today at our cabinet meeting and plan to enact the same very shortly,” he said.
The law minister said these while addressing the UNDP annual meeting 2020, virtually. Anisul was addressing the opening session on “Reflection on Rule of Law, Human Rights, and Social Contract post COVID-19”.
“Despite the general holidays imposed by the government to minimize the risks of spreading the virus, the demand to seek justice has seen a steady increase. Led by the Supreme Court with the technical assistance provided by the UNDP we were able to in a span of two weeks get our subordinate judiciary and a few benches of our high court to operate virtually,” Anisul said.
“We enacted an ordinance allowing courts to operate virtually. We want to maintain the momentum and institutionalize some of the best practice gathered during this period and trigger a systematic transformation of the justice system,” the law minister added.
Anisul also said the government is considering amending Evidence Act, which can ease some of the gaps in legal proceedings.
The law minister acknowledged that despite progress on several fronts, there is always room for improvements, adding, “We need to pay closer attention to our institutions – ensure they are more reliable and able to serve without discrimination. Ensure the institutions place people first.”