The Appellate Division of Bangladesh has suspended a High Court order that directed the formation of an independent Supreme Court Secretariat within three months. The suspension order was issued on Tuesday by a bench led by the Chief Justice following a petition from the state. The appellate hearing is scheduled to begin on June 16.

Earlier in the day, the appeal hearing against the High Court’s full verdict had begun. The state filed the appeal on May 21, challenging the High Court’s April 7 judgment, which spanned 185 pages and mandated the establishment of an independent secretariat for the Supreme Court. The original verdict was delivered on September 2 by a bench comprising Justice Ahmed Sohel and Justice Debashish Roy Chowdhury.

The High Court’s ruling had also annulled the constitutional provision granting the President authority over magistrates’ control and discipline, transferring that responsibility to the Supreme Court, and invalidated the 2017 disciplinary rules for subordinate courts.