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Virtual courts have been brought into the courts of Bangladesh through the use of information technology after long thought, as most institutions in the country conduct their online activities in the coronavirus situation. In this regard, on May 8, the cabinet gave its political and final approval to the draft of the ordinance on the use of information technology, 2020, by the court. The law ministry released the gazette on Saturday (May 9) after the president’s approval. In the past two days, proceedings in the country’s highest and lowest courts have been completed in this manner. However, after the conduct of this court, there has been a mixed reaction among the lawyers. While most young lawyers welcome the process, older lawyers are struggling with it. Due to age, lack of knowledge in technical knowledge, lack of familiarity, even if known, lack of necessary equipment in information technology, etc., mainly experienced lawyers have difficulties in implementing these activities. Your complaints are endless. Their lack of IT knowledge is so low that at the Gopalganj District Bar Association meeting, it was also commented that they do not have the type of protective clothing they need to wear in a virtual court.
For this reason, in the past two days, lawyers have issued statements in various districts of the country rejecting “virtual courts”. However, the analysis has shown that older lawyers, who are less used to information technology than younger ones, have expressed more resentment about it. They have asked for 15 days and a month for this. However, this anger was seen to decrease somewhat on the second day compared to the first day. Many people are now trying to learn the structure online by themselves or with the help of their assistants in old age in search of livelihoods instead of protesting.
In Khulna Virtual cut In, Information technology Of knowledge In limitations Shame
Khulna Representative Md. Hedayet Hossain He said that although the virtual court started in Khulna since Tuesday under the direction of the Supreme Court, the court hearing officially started from Wednesday (May 13). Lawyers participate in the hearing on behalf of their clients. However, due to the limitations of IT knowledge, many attorneys face difficulties.
Lawyer MM Mujibur Rahman, former president of the Khulna District Bar Association and former member of the Bangladesh Bar Council, said that most lawyers face extreme shame due to limited knowledge of information technology . However, older attorneys are the most embarrassed.
KM Iqbal Hossain, secretary general of the Khulna District Bar Association and PP advocate for the metropolitan court, said the virtual court rules are very simple. But some of us are in little trouble because we are not used to it. But he hopes that in a day or two they will get used to it.
Presiding Lawyer of the Khulna District Bar Association. Saiful Islam said that apart from the Women’s and Children’s Court and the Civil Court, other courts are operating. Those two courts are also likely to start soon. We have 20 computers for attorneys. Those who are behind in information technology can help you. He said that with the introduction of virtual courts in the Corona situation, people can receive legal help.
Elderly attorneys collapsed in IT court
Jessore Representative Touhid Zaman Let me know Jessore’s lawyers face more problems as they prepare for the hearing in this court. Since two-thirds of the district’s attorneys are elderly, they have collapsed in IT court. Many of them have reacted with anger. Due to their lack of experience in related matters, including complaints, advance preparation and logistical support, they cannot participate in the procedures of this digital system.
Veteran attorney Shamsul Haque said more than four hundred attorneys practice regularly in Jessore. Two thirds of them are older people like me. We cannot properly operate button cell phones. And smartphones, webcams, scanners – how do I run them? If I received training, I could do the job with at least juniors.
However, he said, “This is a very good government decision. But it cannot be implemented quickly. We have to give time.
Young lawyer Mostafa Humayun Kabir said the law is smart and up-to-date. Judges, bank assistants, lawyers, police and prison authorities needed to be trained in law enforcement. But it was not done. Government agencies can provide quick logistical support. But as a lawyer I have to do these things myself. And if I have to work according to the law right now, I have to go to an internet cafe. And when I go to an internet cafe, I, my client and the judiciary risk losing their privacy. The law says that women and children must not be heard in public courts. It must be in the judge’s private room. How can I present such a case in an internet cafe?
He said that in many cases, the defendant has to present his statement during bond or hearing. Throwing them out in a public place also destroys the confidentiality of the case investigation. After all, if a hard copy remains on a cyber café computer, it could pose a security risk to those involved in the legal process. That is why we need to provide the necessary support to implement this law.
Kazi Faridul Islam, a former secretary of the Bar Association, said training and preparation are essential for the law to work. The law was passed on May 9; And it will be implemented from May 11. This is not a manual court, it is a special court for technology. As a result, there is no preparation on how we will participate in this virtual court. First, I need to have an Android mobile phone, laptop, or computer. Again, an Internet connection, email identification, scanner will also be needed to make an electronic copy of the case documents. We will participate in this court through any application or website; the government has not told us anything about it. There were no guidelines for minimal preparation. As a result, it is impossible to enforce the law within one day after its approval. This would have been possible if the guidelines had been given in a month or at least 15 days. I don’t know if any country in the world has implemented a technology-based law in one day.
In this regard, MA Gafur, the current secretary of the District Bar Association, said that the government has made a timely decision to reduce the complexity of the case during the Corona disaster. But at this time, most lawyers in the country are not ready for implementation. We need to give training and time. Minister of Law, I have informed the Registrar of the Supreme Court. I have demanded a formal hearing until this progress can be reconciled.
District attorney protests over boycott of virtual court proceedings
Meanwhile, after Tuesday, many lawyers protested at various premises of the country’s district court by announcing the boycott of virtual court activities. In the past two days, lawyers have been seen protesting in Bogra, Pabna, Rajshahi, Tangail, Jamalpur and some other districts.
Bogra Representative He said the decision of the Bar Association emergency meeting on Wednesday afternoon has boycotted the activities of the virtual court in Bogra. The association’s secretary general, lawyer Rafiqul Islam, confirmed the veracity of the statement and said that the Judge Magistrate Judiciary (CGM) had called a meeting on Thursday. There will be requests to keep the virtual system running alongside the old system, albeit on a limited scale. However, many lawyers did not support this decision. They disagreed with the boycott decision, saying it was a hot decision by some high-ranking lawyers backed by the ruling party. This will harm the candidates.
Pabna Representative District attorneys have boycotted the virtual court citing a lack of knowledge of information technology and various problems, he said. At the Pabna Bar Association meeting, it was decided not to participate in the court proceedings by boycotting the virtual court.
President of the Pabna Bar Association. At the meeting held under the presidency of Sahabuddin Sabuj, it was reported that in order to manage the court virtually, it is necessary to have an internet connection, smartphone, laptop, scanner and uninterrupted electricity in the house of the lawyer in question. Many of the attorneys are not in a position to purchase these tools at this time.
Tangail representative Tangail’s attorneys will not participate in the virtual court. They demanded that the court be introduced in any other alternative way, maintaining social distance. The decision was made at a meeting of the executive council of the district bar association at noon Tuesday (May 12). Lawyers have called an extended meeting on Thursday (May 14) for final approval of the decision. According to them, most lawyers are not ready to use information technology. Scan the case documents into the virtual court and send it to the court and the other party’s attorney. Therefore, lawyers have to go through many problems with information technology to participate in virtual judicial activities. Therefore, most attorneys demanded to run the court in any other way except the virtual system.
Rajshahi representativeHe said that most of the lawyers of the Rajshahi Bar Association are not interested in judicial work in virtual court due to technology limitations. As a result, there is some uncertainty about the introduction of virtual courts.
In this regard, the Secretary General of the Rajshahi Bar Association, Parvez Tawfiq Jahedi, said that 90 percent of Rajshahi Bar lawyers are not used to technical or digital activities. They still don’t have the slightest idea about the process. There is no training to bring them. As a result, he suffers from an inferiority complex. Do not be interested in virtual courts.
“We had a meeting on Tuesday (May 12),” he added. The lawyers present there expressed their views. There are two or four people who are probably excited about the virtual court. But since most lawyers are not interested, lawyers are unlikely to participate in the virtual court this week.
Jamalpur Representative He said that the lawyers of the Jamalpur District Judges Court do not participate in the virtual court.
Secretary General of the Shah District Bar Association. Enayet Hossain Hitler said the decision not to participate in the court was made at an emergency meeting, as the lawyers did not agree to manage the virtual court.
বরিশাল প্রতিনিধি জানান, আদালতে ভার্চুয়াল কার্যক্রম চালুর প্রতিবাদে এবং পূর্বের মতো ম্যানুয়াল পদ্ধতি চালুর দাবীতে বরিশালে মঙ্গলবার বিক্ষোভ মিছিল করেন আইনজীবীরা। এ সময় আইনজীবীরা ভার্চুয়াল আদালতের বিরুদ্ধে বিভিন্ন শ্লোগান দেন।
এ ব্যাপারে জেলা আইনজীবী সমিতির সম্পাদক কাইয়ুম খান কায়ছার বলেন, বরিশালে ইন্টারনেটের গতি খুবই কম। এছাড়া আইনজীবীদের বড় একটি অংশ প্রবীণ হওয়ায় ফেসবুক, ইন্টারনেট ও সামাজিক যোগাযোগ মাধ্যমে পারদর্শী নন তারা। এ কারণে অনেক আইনজীবী ভার্চুয়াল পদ্ধতিতে আদালতের কার্যক্রম চান না।
Gopalganj প্রতিনিধি জানান, গোপালগঞ্জের আইনজীবীরাও ভার্চুয়াল আদালত বর্জনের সিদ্ধান্ত নিয়েছেন। এমনকি তাদের ভার্চুয়াল আদালত সম্পর্কে জ্ঞানের সীমা এতই কম যে এই আদালতে কী ধরনের পোশাক পরে উপস্থিত হতে হবে সেটা নিয়েও প্রশ্ন তুলেছেন কিছু আইনজীবী।
জেলা আইনজীবী সমিতির সভাপতি মুন্সী আতিয়ার রহমান ও সাধারণ সম্পাদক এম. জুলকদর রহমান স্বাক্ষরিত এক প্রেস বিজ্ঞপ্তিতে ভার্চুয়াল আদালত বর্জনের সিদ্ধান্তের পাশাপাশি বলা হয়েছে, ওই সভায় সিদ্ধান্ত নেওয়া হয় যে, ‘এই ভার্চুয়াল কোর্ট করতে যেসব সুরক্ষামূলক পোশাক থাকতে নেই এবং এ বিষয়ে তাদের কোন প্রশিক্ষণও নাই।’
প্রতিবাদের ভেতরেই বসছে আদালত
প্রবীণ আইনজীবীদের প্রযুক্তিগত জ্ঞানের সীমাবদ্ধতা এবং অনেকেরই শিখতে না চাওয়া কিংবা উপকরণের সংকটের অজুহাত সত্ত্বেও দেশের বেশিরভাগ জেলাতেই আস্তে ধীরে শুরু হয়েছে ভার্চুয়াল আদালত। বয়সে তরুণ এবং তথ্য প্রযুক্তিতে আগ্রহী বেশিরভাগ আইনজীবী এ প্রক্রিয়াকে স্বাগত জানিয়েছেন। তাদের বেশিরভাগেরই দাবি, বিভিন্ন জেলা বার থেকে ভার্চুয়াল আদালত বর্জনের সর্বসম্মত সিদ্ধান্তের নামে যা বলা হচ্ছে তা আসলে সঠিক নয়। বেশিরভাগ বারেই এই সিদ্ধান্তের বিষয়ে দ্বিমত আছে এবং আইনজীবীদের তরুণ অংশটি এ সিদ্ধান্তকে স্বাগত জানিয়েছে। তবে জুনিয়র আইনজীবী হওয়ায় প্রকাশ্যে এ বিষয়ে মন্তব্য করতে চান না অনেকেই।
এদিকে ভার্চুয়াল আদালতের প্রথম দিনে দেশের বিভিন্ন আদালতে মাধ্যমে সারাদেশে ১০৪ জনের জামিন হলেও বুধবার ১ হাজার ১৮৩ টি আবেদনের শুনানি নিয়ে ১ হাজার ১৩ জনকে জামিন দেওয়া হয়েছে।
আইনটি যুগান্তকারী: আইনমন্ত্রী
তবে আইনটিকে যুগান্তকারী এবং এ আইন বাংলাদেশকে আর একটি নতুন অধ্যায় সূচিত করেছে বলে মন্তব্য করেছেন আইনমন্ত্রী আনিসুল হক।
আইনমন্ত্রী বলেন, দেশে যেহেতু ভার্চুয়াল কোর্ট আগে ছিল না। তাই এ ব্যাপারে আমাদের অভিজ্ঞতা নেই। তবে এ সম্পর্কিত অধ্যাদেশ প্রণয়নের চিন্তাভাবনার শুরু থেকে বিচারকদের জন্য একটি বিশেষ প্রশিক্ষণ পরিচালনা করা হয়েছিল। এই প্রশিক্ষণলব্ধ জ্ঞান থেকে তারা স্বল্প পরিসরে জামিন শুনানীসহ অন্যান্য কাজ করতে পারবেন বলে তিনি আশাবাদ ব্যক্ত করেন।
উল্লেখ্য, রাষ্ট্রপতির অনুমোদনক্রমে গত ৯ মে ‘আদালতে তথ্য-প্রযুক্তি ব্যবহার অধ্যাদেশ, ২০২০’ নামে ভার্চুয়াল আদালতের গেজেট প্রকাশ করে সরকার। ঐতিহাসিক এ সিদ্ধান্তের মাধ্যমে দেশের বিচারাঙ্গনও চলে আসে প্রথাগত বিচার ব্যবস্থাপনার পাশাপাশি অনলাইনের ভার্চুয়াল দুনিয়ায়। তবে ভার্চুয়াল কোর্ট বসাতে এখনো হাইকোর্টের রুলস সংশোধনীর প্রয়োজন রয়েছে। সে ধারাবাহিকতায় ইতিমধ্যে একটি কমিটি গঠন করেছেন প্রধান বিচারপতি সৈয়দ মাহমুদ হোসেন। যদিও এই আদালতের নিরাপত্তা নিয়ে আইনজীবীরা যে প্রশ্ন তুলেছেন তার এখনও মীমাংসা হয়নি।
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