The High Court has issued a rule seeking an explanation as to why the government should not publish the list of individuals whose prison sentences were commuted, suspended, or reduced by the President under the authority of Article 49 of the Constitution over the past 33 years and seven months, from January 1991 to July 2024.
The rule was issued on Monday (April 21) by a High Court bench comprising Justice Kazi Zinat Hoque and Justice Aynun Nahar Siddiqua. The case was heard in court today, with Barrister Omar Farooq, the writ petitioner, presenting arguments.
The petition, filed by a Supreme Court lawyer, seeks directives for the publication of a comprehensive list detailing how many individuals have had their sentences commuted, suspended, or reduced by Presidents serving during this 33-and-a-half-year period.
This legal action underscores growing concerns about transparency and accountability in the exercise of presidential clemency powers, as enshrined in the Constitution. The court's intervention aims to ensure clarity regarding the use of this significant constitutional provision over nearly three and a half decades.