The judges started the work stoppage demanding apologies from the SC lawyers who had demonstrated on the premises of the court on November 30, and punishment for the perpetrators of vandalism carried out there on the day.

The SC authorities also filed a sedition case with Shahbagh police accusing 200 people, including noted jurists Dr Kamal Hossain, Barrister Amir-Ul Islam, Barrister Rokanuddin Mahmud and Barrister Tania Amir, of the vandalism and tearing off of the national flag.

Chief Justice Syed JR Mudassir Husain on November 30 stayed the proceedings of a High Court bench, minutes before it was to announce a rule on the assumption of the post of chief adviser by the president, following petitions filed by 14-party leaders, triggering a melee among the lawyers and the people present there, leading to the vandalism.

The judges in a meeting yesterday decided to discontinue their work in the High Court (HC) Division also for two days starting today, and to bring sedition charges against the responsible persons for the ransacking and tearing off of the national flag.

Although the judges of the High Court (HC) and the appellate divisions yesterday came to their offices, none excepting two benches conducted court proceedings.

Meanwhile, Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) yesterday urged the chief justice not to get involved with any political alliance's design and not to take any decision instructed by any party.

The decision to refrain from court proceedings came from a set of meetings of the judges on December 4 and 5, held in the residence of Chief Justice Syed JR Mudassir Husain, says a news release sent by Deputy Registrar of the HC Division Aminul Haque yesterday.

In yesterday's meeting, the judges approved the decisions taken on the day before, and fixed Wednesday and Thursday for the HC Division judges' work stoppage. The meeting also requested the chief justice to fix a date and place for another meeting with both the HC and appellate division judges.

The earlier meeting decided, "It is resolved that the judges will not sit in their courts unless the Bar Association and the Bar Council condemn such acts and apologise for the dastardly acts done by them, at their behest and on their provocation and the offence is detested and punished to the satisfaction of the judges by lawful means and congenial atmosphere is restored on the Supreme Court premises," reads the release.

"It is resolved that the Appellate Division is requested to take appropriate action against the perpetrators of the offence by issuing contempt rule against those responsible and also filing a case of sedition under section 124A/188/504/505 of the Penal Code through any officer of this court in the appropriate criminal court," the release goes on describing the November 30 incident as follows, "Resolved that the blatant attack on the Supreme Court on November 30 by an organised group of lawyers and their flunkies leading to desecrating the flag of Bangladesh, damaging the properties of Supreme Court, damaging the windows of the court rooms and thus desecrating the holy seat of Justice, defying the order of the honourable Chief Justice in a naked and dastardly way, intending and calculated to disturb the tranquillity of the State by creating ill will, discontent, disaffection, hatred and contempt towards the Chief Justice and for that matter towards the Supreme Court, disobeying and defying order of the Chief Justice instead of proceeding against it in accordance with law, creating turmoil and acts of violence and outrage endangering the public peace in and around the Supreme Court demonstrated clear acts of the sedition against the State which includes Governments established by law including legislature, judiciary and executive."

The meeting also decided to seek 'sufficient security for individual judges in their residences, in the courtrooms, and on the SC premises as a whole with immediate effect'.

Following the judges decision, Rafiqul Islam, the SC court keeper, filed a complaint with the police station with a request to register it as a regular case, but police recorded it as a General Diary (GD).

Later, after consultation with higher police authorities the GD was turned into a case, according to Shahbagh police. No section was mentioned in the GD, but sections 143, 147, 149, 427, 435 and 124 (A) of the Penal Code were inducted in the case. Of them, section 124 (A) is a sedition charge carrying a maximum penalty of life term imprisonment.

Police said there is no bar on registering a case and investigating it, but the home ministry's permission is necessary when a charge sheet is submitted.

In the case, the court keeper mentioned that about 200 people including lawyers of three writ petitioners, their assistants and some outsiders vandalised the chief justice's chamber, courtrooms and other public properties after the chief justice had issued a stay order on the petitions.

The enraged lawyers went to the courtroom where a hearing of the petitions was being held and made indecent remarks to the chief justice and other judges.

Meanwhile, SCBA lawyers yesterday in a news briefing said they found similarities between the judges' decision and four-party alliance's demand, as the alliance leaders demanded not to open the court until the responsible people are punished.

Stating that SCBA will continue boycotting the court of chief justice, the association's President Barrister Amir-Ul Islam said the meetings in the chief justice's residence created a new crisis, which is unfortunate for the nation.

After a general meeting in Shaheed Abdul Ahad Hall on the SC premises, he said the judges got themselves involved with the activities of political alliances and urged the chief justice to stay aloof from political matters.

He reiterated SCBA's claim that the chief justice had no right to stay the proceedings of the petitions in the HC and that he even did not follow proper procedures.

Amir-Ul also said nothing had happened that endangers the judges.

Former and current SCBA leaders Abul Baset Majumdar, Ozair Farooq, Mahbubey Alam, Abdul Matin Khashru, Enayetur Rahim, and M Amin Uddin attended the meeting among others.

Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Forum yesterday morning formed a human chain and reiterated its demands for issuing a contempt rule against pro-Awami League lawyers and for closing down the court until they are punished.

Khandaker Mahabubuddin Ahmed, Barrister Shahjahan Omar, Habibul Islam Bhuiyan, Nitai Roy Chowdhury, Jainul Abedin, Shah Khasruzzaman and others spoke at the event.