Court Correspondent

The trial courts in Dhaka have been at a standstill for over two weeks ever since the student-led protests brought down Sheikh Hasina’s government, causing delays and frustrations among the stakeholders.

Approximately 70 percent of state prosecutors have been absent from court, leaving numerous trials in the lurch.

Defence lawyers, faced with the absence of state prosecutors, have been attending court sessions only to request adjournments, resulting in delays in significant cases. Litigants are often left with no option but to return home without progress in their cases.

A few Anti-Corruption Commission, or ACC, lawyers have resumed attending court from Tuesday, allowing some hearings in corruption cases to proceed.

However, trials for most cases, including those involving murder, arms, and anti-terrorism laws, remain on hold.

Amid this situation, a few pre-trial bail hearings are being conducted, primarily with police officers representing the state in court.

Saiful Islam Mithu, an official at Dhaka's Special Judge Court No. 9, told bdnews24.com: "Although 70 percent of the public prosecutors are absent, our court's ACC prosecutor Iskandar King was present yesterday and today, allowing witness testimonies in corruption cases to go ahead."

A plaintiff's lawyer, Mahbub Hasan Rana, told bdnews24.com: "Without public prosecutors, cases are stalled, both big and small. I don't know how long this disruption will last in the courts."

Although some public prosecutors, like Shah Alam Talukder, an additional public prosecutor at Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge Court, were in court, they had not actively participated in cases.

Talukder told bdnews24.com, "I came to observe the situation in the court, but we have not yet received any instructions from the ministry."

He said, "Those of us who were honest in our work aren't facing any problems. It's different for those who weren't."

Kalam Khan, a BNP-affiliated lawyer, highlighting the political undercurrents affecting the courts, said: "All state lawyers were appointed during the Awami League's tenure. It's unclear when new public prosecutors will be appointed, and if this delay continues, the backlog of cases will only worsen."

Meanwhile, the absence of senior ACC lawyers, such as Mosharraf Hossain Kajol, and the head of the Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge Court's public prosecutors, Md Abdullah Abu, as well as additional public prosecutor Tapas Kumar Pal, has been conspicuous.

However, some special public prosecutors in Dhaka, including those in the Speedy Trial Tribunal and the Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal, have been regularly attending court sessions.

Nonetheless, others, such as Nazrul Islam Shamim, a special public prosecutor at the Dhaka Cyber Tribunal, have been absent since Aug 5.

A scheduled hearing for the North-South University corruption case at Dhaka's Special Judge Court No. 1 on Monday could not proceed due to the absence of the ACC’s public prosecutor. Defence lawyer Borhan Uddin left the courtroom without the hearing taking place.

The ACC filed a case on May 5, 2022, against Azim Uddin Ahmed, chairman of the North South University Board of Trustees, and five others, accusing them of embezzling over Tk 3 billion.

Similarly, a hearing was scheduled for Tuesday in the case against Regent Group chairman Mohammad Shahed, who is accused of providing fake COVID-19 reports and embezzling over Tk 110 million through fraud. The hearing did not take place.

ACC lawyer Mahmud Hasan Jahangir said: "I was in court at the time, but only routine proceedings occurred. No hearings are being held."

Criminal lawyer Aminul Gani Tito told bdnews24.com: "I haven’t been able to proceed with any major hearings in my cases. The absence of state prosecutors and a lack of decision-making is causing delays. New public prosecutors should be appointed if needed; otherwise, the backlog of cases will increase."

Lawyer Shahinur Islam Oni said no significant hearings are currently taking place.

He told bdnews24.com: "We can't conduct any important hearings because there are no state prosecutors. Hopefully, the situation will improve in the coming weeks."