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Download PDF The High Court (HC) yesterday issued a rule upon the government and the Election Commission (EC) to explain within eight days as to why the EC’s August 4 schedule for holding elections to four city corporations and nine municipalities without the final voter list should not be declared illegal.
Responding to a writ petition filed by Jasim Uddin Sarker, a Supreme Court (SC) lawyer and a leader of the Dhaka city unit of Jamaat-e Islami, an HC division bench comprised of Justice Md Imman Ali and Justice Md Emdadul Huq issued the rule.
The chief adviser of the caretaker government, law secretary, cabinet secretary, the president’s secretary and the EC are the respondents.
On July 10, the HC summarily rejected a writ petition filed by another SC lawyer Giasuddin Ahmed seeking stay on the EC’s schedule for holding the elections.
Masood Reza Sobhan, counsel for Jasim Uddin Sarker, argued before the HC bench that the schedule for holding elections to the city corporations and municipalities without publishing the final voter list was illegal.
“As per the rules of the Electoral Roll (Amendment) Ordinance, 2007, the previous voter list has become redundant and all elections will be held in the country under the new voter list. There is no final voter list at this moment and there cannot be a free, fair and transparent election without the final voter list,” he said.
Advocate Tajul Islam and barrister Fatema S Sobhan assisted Masood in moving the petition before the court.
Masood yesterday told the media that the HC on July 10 rejected the writ petition to stay the local government election schedule since the petition was filed on different grounds.
On July 6, Jasim Uddin Sarker filed the writ petition as a public interest litigation (PIL), challenging the legality of two ordinances promulgated by the government for holding local government elections.
The petitioner prayed to the HC to stay the EC’s August 4 schedule for holding polls to four city corporations and nine municipalities.
The government, on May 14, issued gazette notifications promulgating Local Government (City Corporation) Ordinance, 2008 and Local Government (Municipality) Ordinance, 2008 for holding the elections.
The EC on June 20 announced the schedule.
Giasuddin’s counsel ABM Nurul Islam told reporters that the HC had rejected his writ petition on grounds that the EC has the right to hold the elections and the HC cannot interfere in the EC’s function when the EC has made all preparations for holding the elections.
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