The Council, statutory body of legal practitioners, at a meeting also decided to file a criminal case against him for giving false information in the affidavit he submitted when he had applied for Bar Council's certificate to practise law as an advocate.

The Bar Council criticised the decision of the chief justice (CJ) to reinstate Faizee in his judicial tasks in the High Court bench and decided to request the CJ to withdraw him.

Vice Chairman of Bar Council Barrister Rokanuddin Mahmud yesterday informed the press about the decisions taken at the meeting he had chaired. The attorney general, ex-officio chairman of the council, did not attend the meeting, as he was indisposed.

The Council took the decision in accordance with Section 62 (5) of The Bangladesh Legal Practitioners and Bar Council Order and Rules, which empowers the council to suspend or revoke enrolment of an advocate.

When a lawyer becomes an additional judge, his certificate of enrolment issued by the Bar Council remains withheld.

The High Court on March 21 convicted reporters, editors and publishers of two Bangla dailies for running reports on the alleged doctoring of LLB results of Faizee, one of the 19 additional judges whose appointment last year drew sharp criticism.

The Prothom Alo and the Bhorer Kagoj reported on October 30 last year that Justice Faizee had tampered with his marks-sheet of the LLB examinations he had sat from Chittagong Law College in 1989. They referred to an inquiry committee of Chittagong University (CU) which dug out the fraud.

The CJ on October 31 asked Faizee not to sit at his two-member HC division bench after senior judge of the bench Justice Ali Asgar declined to sit with him and lawyers threatened to boycott the court. Justice Faizee later went on leave.

But the CJ allotted him a single-member bench on April 10 this year and Faizee resumed his work amid raging protests from lawyers.

The Bar Council served a show-cause notice on Faizee last November asking him to reply in seven days why punitive action would not be taken against him. It also asked him to explain why his enrolment would not be cancelled for providing false information to receive enrolment certificate.

In a letter, the Council asked the CU authorities to allow two Bar Council members to verify the matter. But the CU authorities refused to allow the council to probe the issue and said they would conduct another investigation.

As Faizee did not reply to the show-cause notice to refute the allegations and the CU authorities did not defend him as an LLB graduate either, the Bar Council took it to be granted that the allegations are true, Rokanuddin told reporters at his chamber.

Section 62 (5) of The Bangladesh Legal Practitioners and Bar Council Order and Rules says: "The Bar Council may suspend or revoke enrolment of an Advocate and recall certificate of enrolment if it is satisfied on any report or information from the appropriate authority that the academic certificate produced by the Advocate at the time of his enrolment is fake and forged; or any statement made in form-A and/or in the affidavit in support of form-A is found false; and may also refer for appropriate legal action for using such forged document after giving an opportunity to show cause to the incumbent."

Faizee applied for Bar Council's enrolment certificate showing a provisional LLB certificate. Even Faizee's father Mohammad Faiz, who filed the contempt suit against the two dailies, failed to produce Faizee's LLB certificate before court when he filed the case.

"So, the Council meeting unanimously revokes his enrolment," Rokanuddin said.

Eight members of the Council who attended the meeting are Mahbubey Alam, Sahara Khatun, Yusuf Hossain Humayun, Misbah Uddin Siraj, MA Salam, Jahirul Haque, Sarder Suruzzaman and Rokanuddin Mahmud.

Faizee mentioned September 15, 1965 as his date of birth in his application (Form-A) and supporting affidavit submitted for Bar Council certificate. But his SSC certificate attached to the application says the date was September 15, 1963.

Faizee testified that all information in the affidavit were true, but he put false information there, Rokanuddin said. "We have decided to file a criminal case (against Faizee) for providing false information in the affidavit," he added.

About the eligibility of becoming a Supreme Court (SC) judge, the constitution says a person having 10 years' experience in legal practice at the SC or having background of working in the judicial service for at least 10 years can be an SC judge.

Faizee was appointed an additional judge of the High Court for having 10 years' experience in legal practice.

Since Faizee received the Council's permission to begin his practice on deceit, all his practice will be considered as null and void, Rokanuddin said.

He said Justice Faizee now has lost the moral right to remain a judge as his working experience 'cannot be counted as legal practice'. "Once his certificate for practice is revoked, judicial work and judgements of Faizee should have no legality," he added.

The Bar Council meeting decided to inform the CJ, law ministry, CU and Justice Faizee about its decisions, which will be circulated through a gazette notification.

As Faizee continues his judicial tasks, litigants may face trouble because constitutional legality of his judgements may be questioned in future, Rokanuddin said. He believes it would be safe for the litigants with his bench to get their cases transferred to other benches.

If the CJ does not withdraw Faizee from the bench, the Bar Council will table a proposal at its extended meeting with presidents and secretaries of all Bar associations of the country on May 13 to boycott the courts for a day to protest Faizee's judicial work.