The government has approved an ordinance to introduce court proceedings via videoconferencing amid the novel coronavirus pandemic.
On Thursday, the cabinet has given the final approval to the 2020 ordinance on the use of information technology by courts, at a meeting led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam said in a televised message on Thursday.
“It is not possible to continue the court proceedings physically everywhere because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The Supreme Court sought to use information technology and continue judicial proceedings remotely,” the secretary said.
According to the existing law, the plaintiffs, defendants and their legal counsels must attend the court proceedings physically to run a trial.
Like many other countries, Bangladesh has enforced a lockdown since March 26 closing all government and private offices and banning mass gatherings.
“This causes a bottleneck of cases and deprives people of justice, as the courts are closed for a long time. The law ministry and the Supreme Court felt the need for drafting a law to run the court proceedings via videoconferencing and other digital means,” Islam said, reports bdnews24.com.
