BNP leader and ex-law minister Moudud Ahmed yesterday said the government had an “ulterior and dishonest" motive behind hastily bringing an amendment to the constitution re-empowering parliament to impeach Supreme Court judges.

The independence of the judiciary will be harmed if the bill is passed, he told a meeting at the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), organised by pro-BNP lawyers' platform Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Forum (JAF) in protest of the move.

The constitutional bill was placed in parliament on Sunday. Currently, the chief justice-led Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) removes the apex court judges.

Moudud said Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the country's founding father, had given impeachment powers to the president and shut most newspapers through the fourth amendment, but the Awami League felt ashamed of admitting this.

On the other hand, Ziaur Rahman, the BNP founder and a military ruler, had introduced SJC through the fifth constitutional amendment to ensure judiciary's independence, he said.

He added that although Law Commission Chairman Justice ABM Khairul Haque had recommended re-empowering parliament to impeach judges, he had accepted the SJC provision in his judgment that nullified the fifth amendment. SCBA President and BNP chairperson's adviser Khandker Mahbub Hossain saw the latest amendment attempt and the National Broadcast Policy as a prelude to a one-party rule

JAF President Rafiqul Islam Mia said judges would not be able to discharge duties independently, and the judiciary would be jeopardised if the bill was passed.