A total of 14 Supreme Court judges have resigned either under pressure or facing investigation from the Supreme Judicial Council, and three judges have been removed on the recommendation of the council after the political changeover on August 5, 2024.

Of them, six were Appellate Division judges, including Chief Justice, and the remaining 11 were in the High Court Division.

All but two of the 17 judges were appointed during the Awami League regime. The other two were appointed during the tenure of the BNP-led government.

A senior Supreme Court lawyer, requesting anonymity, told The Daily Star that resignation and removal of so many Supreme Court judges in such manner is a bad sign for the judiciary.

“People may begin to have adverse perception about the judiciary,” he added.

However, Attorney General Md Ruhul Quddus Kazal told The Daily Star that the resignations and dismissals have had no impact on judicial functions of the Supreme Court.

He said the judges who resigned did not disclose reasons behind their decision, adding that others were removed by the president in a constitutional process upon the recommendation of the Supreme Judicial Council.

The council is a three-member body comprising the Chief Justice and two senior-most appellate judges. It probes allegations of incompetence and misconduct against Supreme Court judges and makes recommendations to the president.

The attorney general said the government may consider appointing new judges if there is a shortage.

On August 10, 2024, Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan and five other appellate judges stepped down amid student protests demanding their resignation.

The development came two days after the interim government took charge.

Earlier, several thousand students gathered on the Supreme Court premises around 10:30am, demanding resignation of the top judges. A group of pro-BNP-Jamaat lawyers joined the protesters.

Three High Court judges—Justices Salma Masud Chowdhury, Quazi Reza-Ul-Hoque and AKM Zahirul Hoque—who were under Supreme Judicial Council investigation since August 2021, resigned in November 2024.

Justices Khizir Hayat, Khandaker Diliruzzaman, and Muhammad Khurshid Alam Sarkar, all High Court judges, were removed at different times last year on the judicial council's recommendations.

Justices Md Akhtaruzzaman and Shahed Nuruddin resigned from the High Court last year while the council was investigating them.

Justices Mamnoon Rahman, Naima Haider, and Md Rezaul Hasan stepped down at different times this year amid investigations, Supreme Court sources said.

The Supreme Judicial Council has not disclosed any probe report to the public.