A Division Bench of the High Court Division comprising Justice Mainur Reza Chowdhury and Justice M.A. Aziz recently declared that the Government had acted mala fide to harass the petitioner. M.I. Farooqui, Advocate of the Appellate Division by asking him to name his clients and to divulge the particulars of the cases he had appeared from March 1. 1993 to March 20. 1994. M.I. Farooqui in his application challenged the authority of the Government to coax him in his professional pursuits. He stated that he is the founder-member and patron of the Democratic and Constitutional Advancement of Bangladesh (ADCAB). which has been working for the people’s awareness to guard against the violation of the Constitution and laws of the Republic. He conducte many constitutional cases of public importance filed by ADCAB’s General Secretary. M. Saleem Ullah. Advocate. The cases Include the case of the double-office held by Justice Abdul Quddus Chowdhury as a Judge of the High Court Division and the Secretary. Ministry of Law: the case of holding double-office by Justice Mohammad Abdur Rouf as a sitting Judge and the Chief Election Commissioner; the case of holding the office of the Chairman of the Press Council by Justice Sultan Hossain Khan after his retirement from the post of the Chief Election Commissioner;Justice Md. Sadek after his retirement as a judge he was appointed as Chief Election Commissioner; and some other cases.

The Anti-Corruption Bureau first served. a notice dated 31.10.1993 for examining him in relation to the facts and circumstances stated in an anonymous letter made subject of File No. 3/Dar/92. He appeared and explained his position. After the expiry of a year the Bureau sent another memo dated 12.9.1994 asking him to divulge the particulars of the cases,the petitioner conducted from March 1. 1993 to March 20. 1994.

The Court, while making the Rule absolute, observed: "If we are to believe that the inquiry was in response to the information received by the anonymous letter then the wholesale information of all cases handled by the petitioner from 1.3.93 to 20.3.94 cannot be said to be connected with the alleged remittance of the sale proceeds of the houses at Motijheei and Gul-asking for such wholesale information of the cases handled by him for that period appears to us to be mala fide, fishing for information only to harass the petitioner."