The writ powers of the High Court division bench of Justice Shah Abu Nayeem Mominur Rahman and Justice Shahidul Islam that recently handed down verdicts in a series of high-profile cases were taken away yesterday.
The division bench has been given the jurisdiction of hearing the first civil appeal of more than Tk 1 lakh, a court official said.
The official, who asked to remain unidentified, described it as a routine reallocation of power to the benches.
The order came yesterday as the HC bench is scheduled to start the final hearing on March 19 on a writ petition challenging the validity of not holding national elections in 90 days stipulated timeframe.
The bench last month gave a landmark verdict declaring illegal a government sanction to try an extortion case against detained former premier Sheikh Hasina under the Emergency Power Rules (EPR) and quashed the trial proceedings.
The bench also asserted that the High Court can grant bail even to those convicted in the cases under the EPR. Later, the Supreme Court cancelled it.
The bench also gave a verdict that declared illegal the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) notice served on Hasina for submitting her wealth statement to the commission.