If the ordinance were put into effect, the judiciary would be separated from the executive and the magistrates, who are currently under the control of the executive, will then come under the authority of the higher court and be known as judicial magistrates.

When contacted for comments on the promulgation of the ordinance, Law Secretary Alauddin Sarder, however, was not willing to make any.

Additional Attorney-General Abdur Rezzak Khan confirmed The Daily Star that "The president has already given his consent to promulgate the ordinance. The gazette notification is currently being published."

Rezzak said, "We cannot say yet the ordinance has been promulgated since it is still in the press for being printed. But as soon as the gazette notification is printed and published, the ordinance will be in effect."

All actions related to the separation of the judiciary will be then taken under the amendment, he added.

The CrPC amendment is generally passed through a bill placed before parliament. But since there is no parliament now, the president has had to amend the CrPC through an ordinance, said Rezzak.

According to the constitution, an ordinance will have to be laid before parliament at its first meeting following the promulgation of the ordinance.

The bill styled "Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2006" with amendments necessary for separation of the judiciary was expected to be passed in parliament during the previous government's rule.

However, while the bill was gathering dust at the law ministry, the then law minister Moudud Ahmed did not make any move to expedite the process.

When this was mentioned at a press conference on October 10 last year, Moudud made an angry reaction and told reporters, "You go and remove the dust."

Meanwhile, the government published a gazette notification of four rules relevant to the separation of the judiciary.

The rules are Judicial Service Commission Rule 2002, Bangladesh Judicial Service Pay Commission Rule 2002, Bangladesh Judicial Service (Service Constitution, Composition, Recruitment, Suspension, Dismissal and Removal) Rules 2002, and Bangladesh Judicial Service (Posting, Promotion, Leave, Control, Discipline and other Service Condition) Rules 2001.

The gazette notification for Bangladesh Judicial Service Pay Commission Rule 2002 was placed before the court during yesterday's hearing of the judiciary separation case at the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court.

Attorney General (AG) AJ Mohammad Ali told the court that the three other rules are being printed in the press for publication and that he will receive them soon.

When asked by the court about the CrPC amendment, the AG sought for another 10 days for the task, but the court did not respond to his request.

The seven-member full bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice JR Syed Mudassir Hosain directed the AG to place the gazette notifications of the rules by next Sunday through an affidavit.

The bench also asked him to inform the court of the progress on the CrPC amendment.

Counsel for the judiciary separation case Barrister Amir-Ul Islam, who was present in the court, later told reporters, "We will come to know how much deviation has taken place from the Supreme Court guidelines once all the four rules and the CrPC amendment are placed before the court."

Nine bureaucrats who have been facing contempt charges for distorting the SC directives also appeared before the court.

The SC directed them to appear before the court at the next hearing on Sunday.