The newly introduced judicial magistracy will start functioning on November 1, when the amended Code of Criminal Procedure comes into effect for the separation of the judiciary from the executive, with 201 judicial magistrates,(NewageBD)

224 court rooms and 950 members on the staff.

Once the judicial magistracy starts functioning, the 201 magistrates will need to deal with more than five lakh criminal cases, now pending with magistrate’s courts run by more than 800 magistrates across the country.

According to the amended Code of Criminal Procedure, the cases pending with the courts of district magistrate or additional district magistrate will be transferred to the court of the sessions judge of the district, and the cases pending with the court of the executive magistrate will be transferred to the chief judicial magistrate of the district.

The sessions judge and the chief judicial magistrate will dispose of the cases transferred to them or transfer them to the court of additional sessions judges or judicial magistrates respectively.

Any proceedings or investigations pending with any magistrate, in the case of an executive matter, will be transferred to the district magistrate. If such proceedings or investigations are judicial matters, they will be transferred to the chief judicial magistrate or the subordinate judicial magistrate.

According to a report submitted by the government to the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, 4,84,832 cases, as of February 28, have been pending with magistrate’s courts and at least 890 magistrates would be required to deal with the cases.

The Supreme Court registrar, Ikteder Ahmed, told New Age on Thursday that the 201 judicial magistrates joined the courts. He said 224 court rooms were readied for judicial magistracy.

The government has recently appointed 179 judicial officers as judicial magistrates in consultation with the Supreme Court.

Twenty-two judicial officers, who were working with different government offices on deputation, have been brought back to the judicial service and appointed judicial magistrates, the registrar said.

The sets or rules on judicial service, framed for the separation of the judiciary have, however, created a scope for executive magistrates, now performing judicial functions, to opt in to the judicial service.

According to the Code of Criminal Procedure amendment, the existing metropolitan magistrates will continue to function and be treated as metropolitan judicial magistrates, additional district magistrates as chief judicial magistrates, upazila magistrates as upazila judicial magistrates until the government, in consultation with the Supreme Court, orders otherwise.

The magistrates who will not opt in to the judicial service will be taken back in the administration service at once, the amendment said.

According to sources in the establishment ministry, only 20 executive magistrates have finally opted in to the judicial service.

The government will need to apprise the Supreme Court by October 29 of the progress made so far in the implementation of its directives on the separation of the judiciary.

The Appellate Division on September 18 ordered the government to arrange temporary accommodation for judicial magistrates in courtrooms and chambers, now used by executive magistrates in discharging judicial duties and report the progress by October 29.

Posting for October 31 further order in this regard, the court said it would be the last chance and no further time would be allowed for the government to arrange temporary accommodation for judicial magistracy.

The court also ordered the public works ministry to arrange temporary courtrooms and chambers for 431 judicial magistrates who are yet to get any accommodation.

The public works ministry report, submitted to the court on September 18, said the courtrooms required, along with chambers, were ready for the use of 138 judicial magistrates and 86 metropolitan judicial magistrates.