HC questions appointment of 3 judges as ministers’ PSs

The High Court on Thursday issued a rule asking the government to explain why the appointment of three members of the Bangladesh Judicial Service as private secretaries to two ministers and a state minister should not be declared illegal.

The HC bench comprising Justice Md Toufiq Inam and Justice Mahmud Hasan issued the rule responding to a writ petition filed challenging the legality of assigning judicial officers to executive posts outside their judicial duties, raising questions over the separation of the judiciary from the executive branch of the government.

The petition cited Rule 4(1) of the Judicial Service Formation Rules, 2025, which specifies designated cadre posts of the judicial service in its schedule, arguing that the posts assigned to the three judicial officers were not included in the schedule.

The petition challenged three government notifications appointing the judicial officers to executive positions.