Attorney General Barrister Md Ruhul Quddus Kazal. -File Photo

By SM Ashikuzzaman

DHAKA, Mar 30, 2026 (BSS) – Attorney General Barrister Md Ruhul Quddus Kazal has said that tendency of filing false cases must be stopped to reduce the growing backlog of cases in the country’s courts.

In an exclusive interview with Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) after assuming office, the state’s chief law officer spoke about the persistent case congestion in the judiciary.

The Attorney General said it would not be appropriate to blame any single factor for the case backlog, nor would resolving one issue alone solve the entire problem.

“There are multiple reasons behind the accumulation of cases in our courts. Among them, I consider procedural issues related to the filing of cases as a major cause,” he added.

Highlighting the severity of false cases, he said often, when one person commits a specific offence, several unrelated individuals are also implicated as accused persons.

“As a result, many innocent individuals become defendants while attempting to punish the actual offender. Once accused, they seek justice from the courts — sometimes for bail, sometimes for stay orders, sometimes through appeals against convictions, and even through review petitions in higher courts,” he said.

Kazal said such processes create multiple branches of litigation from a single case, ultimately contributing to the mounting backlog.

Regarding solutions, the Attorney General said the primary step should be to stop the practice of filing false cases. He also suggested resolving civil disputes through alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms.

He further proposed activating village courts to reduce pressure on formal courts, noting that minor offences not involving serious allegations or severe punishment could be resolved through local judicial mechanisms.

The attorney general further said punishment for filing false cases could even be made stricter than that imposed on the accused in certain circumstances, adding that unless fear of stricter penalties is established, people will not refrain from lodging false cases.

Barrister Ruhul Quddus Kazal also noted that many pending cases in higher courts lack substantive merit, while others no longer attract public interest, thereby contributing to case congestion.

He said that despite clear legal precedents in many areas, High Court rules are frequently issued even after verdicts by the apex court, and such matters later proceed again to the Appellate Division. 

These practices, he said, must be discouraged to prevent the creation of new case backlogs.

He added that since the appointment of the current Chief Justice, the Appellate Division has recently disposed of several thousand cases, describing the initiative as commendable.