The High Court yesterday validated a government notification promoting a judicial officer, Ali Ashraf Khan Lode, to additional secretary at the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs.

Discharging its rule issued earlier upon the government following a Public Interest Litigation writ petition, a division bench of Justice ABM Khairul Haque and Justice Syed M Ziaul Karim delivered the judgment.

Justifying the government action, the court observed that there is "no basis of declaring illegal" the appointment of Lode, a judicial officer, to the post of additional secretary.

As Lode was appointed before the promulgation of the Judicial Service Rules in compliance with the Supreme Court verdict given in the Masder Hossain case for separating the judiciary from the executive, "the question of amalgamation between the members of the judicial and executive officers does not arise".

Dr Shahdeen Malik, an advocate, filed the writ petition.