Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan has made a principled decision to resign after discussing the matter with Dr. Asif Nazrul, the interim government’s advisor for law, justice, and parliamentary affairs.
However, the Chief Justice stated that he would take formal steps only after consulting with the President. He shared this information with journalists today, Saturday (August 10).
Earlier, the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement issued an ultimatum for the Chief Justice and other judges of the Appellate Division to resign by 1 PM. The ultimatum was announced by the movement’s coordinator, Hasnat Abdullah, at the High Court premises at 11 AM.
Around the same time, a large number of protesting students gathered at the High Court premises, demanding the resignation of the Chief Justice. Students from various educational institutions marched to the High Court and staged a protest. Over a hundred lawyers also joined the protest, which circled the main Supreme Court building and the Appellate Division.
The protest was led by Advocate Gazi Kamrul Islam Sajal, Organizational Secretary of the Nationalist Lawyers’ Forum, and Advocate Jasim Uddin Sarkar, a leader of the Bangladesh Lawyers’ Council. Before this, the movement’s coordinator, Asif Mahmud, had labeled the Chief Justice as an accomplice to fascism and demanded his resignation, calling for an end to the Full Court Meeting.