WASHINGTON — A bipartisan pair of senators are introducing a bill to protect Special Counsel Robert Mueller and his Russia investigation.

The legislation being introduced by Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) comes amid increasing criticism of Mueller’s work by President Trump.

“It is critical that special counsels have the independence and resources they need to lead investigations,” Tillis said in a statement Thursday.

“A back-end judicial review process to prevent unmerited removals of special counsels not only helps to ensure their investigatory independence, but also reaffirms our nation’s system of check and balances.”

The bill would allow Mueller and any future special counsel to challenge his or her firing before a three-judge panel review within two weeks.

The bill would be retroactive to May 17, 2017 — the day Mueller was appointed by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to investigate Russian meddling in the 2016 election and possible ties to Trump’s campaign.