British human rights activist and investigative journalist David Bergman has condemned the arrest warrant against former chief justice ABM Khairul Haque as fresh evidence of Bangladesh’s “severely politicised judiciary,” arguing the government is either complicit or deliberately overlooking this erosion of judicial independence.
In a detailed Facebook post on Saturday, Bergman characterised the arrest as baseless, noting the complete absence of credible evidence linking the former chief justice to a murder allegedly committed during last year’s student-led mass uprising.
Bergman emphasised that the arbitrary nature of the detention is an open secret within law enforcement circles, with every officer involved in the arrest – from the arresting police to the magistrates who ordered detention – fully aware that no evidence exists or will be found to substantiate the murder charge.
He described this as a clear violation of legal principles that establishes a dangerous precedent of judicial harassment.
The arrest is widely perceived as political retribution for Haque’s controversial 2011 verdict that declared the caretaker government system unconstitutional, a ruling that provided the Awami League government with legal justification to abolish the system.
Bergman warned that prosecuting a retired Chief Justice solely for delivering an unpopular judicial decision constitutes a direct assault on judicial independence and the rule of law, particularly when the charge involves something as serious as murder without evidentiary basis.
Highlighting the broader implications, Bergman noted that while judges can legitimately face prosecution for criminal acts like corruption, the current case sets a dangerous precedent where judicial rulings become subject to political retaliation.
He drew parallels to the forced exile of former chief justice Sinha during Awami League’s previous tenure, suggesting a pattern of targeting judicial figures for their decisions.
Bergman concluded with an urgent appeal: if Bangladesh’s government and judiciary wish to maintain even minimal credibility in their handling of accountability for the violence carried out during the uprising, they must immediately release the former chief justice and cease using the legal system as a political tool.
The continued detention, he argued, not only undermines judicial independence but also erodes public trust in the entire legal framework.