Corruption and crimes will remarkable come down in Bangladesh had the judiciary been able to properly exercise the power given to it by the constitution and laws, Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha said yesterday.
The chief justice (CJ) was addressing the inaugural function of online application registration system of Bangladesh Judicial Service Commission in Dhaka.
He lamented that the Supreme Court cannot discharge its due role, as given to it by the constitution and the law of the land. “Had the Supreme Court been able to discharge its duties properly, as bestowed upon it by the constitution and the laws of the land, I think the tendency towards crime and corruption and even terrorist activities would have come down sharply,” he said.
Explaining the reason for the apex court’s disability to properly discharge its duties, the CJ said a section of officials of the administration is conveying ‘wrong reports about the judiciary to the head of the government’, resulting in a misunderstanding between the judiciary and the administration. 
A section of lower level officials of the administration is giving wrong explanations to the top administration, Justice Sinha said, calling on administration officials to refrain from giving any wrong explanations to ensure good relations between the judiciary and the government. “The judiciary is not affected by these wrong explanations; rather, it takes a toll on the 
government,” he added. 
The chief justice, however, clarified that the judiciary has no rivalry, either with the administration 
or the government. 
About the vacancies in the lower judiciary, Justice Sinha said a total of 307 posts in the lower court judges, including six of district judges, have been lying vacant for a long time, resulting in a huge backlog of cases. “These posts could not be filled as the government is yet to give its nod to an apex court 
proposal,” he noted.
The CJ disclosed that more than 3MN cases are currently pending before the courts for disposal across the country. 
“We have sent a proposal over the vacant posts in the judiciary. But we did not get assistance from the administration,” he added.
The CJ also said the government annually collects 30bn taka as revenue from the judiciary. Yet, the lower court judges have to share their courtrooms during the judicial function since there is a dearth of sufficient 
courtrooms, he pointed out.
The CJ also mentioned several achievements of the apex court, including the deliberations in the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman murder case, the jail killing case and war crimes cases.