BNP joins writ challenging 15th Amendment, hearing begins Wednesday
BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has joined the petition regarding the 15th Amendment to the constitution, which raises several issues including the abolition of the caretaker government system. The High Court has allowed his plea on behalf of the party to assist the court as an intervener, upholding the rule issued in response to a writ.
The High Court bench of Justice Farah Mahbub and Justice Debashish Roy Chowdhury issued this order on Tuesday. The ruling on the 15th Amendment is scheduled for hearing on Wednesday.
On 19 August, the High Court addressed the preliminary hearing of the writ filed by five eminent individuals, including Badiul Alam Majumdar and representatives from Sushashoner Jonno Nagorik (Sujon), questioning the validity of the 15th Amendment Act.
The court issued a rule asking why the 15th Amendment Act should not be declared inconsistent with the Constitution. Following this, the secretary general of BNP applied to the High Court seeking permission to intervene in support of this rule. The court granted this appeal today.
Senior lawyers Zainul Abedin, M Badruddoza, Farzana Sharmin, and Anisur Rahman Raihan represented the BNP in the hearing.
Attorney general Asaduzzaman, additional attorney general Mohammad Arshadur Rauf, and deputy attorney General Tanim Khan represented the state.
Previously, the writ petitioners presented their case to the High Court bench on 20 October. The court placed the matter on its agenda for 21 October, where it subsequently set 30 October for the hearing of the ruling.
New rule on the 15th amendment
The amendment to the Constitution was enacted in 2011 during the Awami League government, with the Fifteenth Amendment Act passed by the National Parliament on 30 June, 2011.
The gazette was published on 3 July, 2011. Last week, freedom fighter Mofazzal Hossain, a resident of Narayanpara, Raninagar, Naogaon, filed a writ challenging the validity of at least 16 clauses of the Fifteenth Amendment.
The High Court bench, comprising Justice Farah Mahbub and Justice Debashish Roy Chowdhury, issued a ruling on Tuesday, asking why these clauses should not be declared in conflict with the Constitution.
Senior advocates Fida M Kamal and ASM Shahriar Kabir represented the writ in court, while attorney general Asaduzzaman attended the hearing on behalf of the state.
The Fifteenth Amendment abolished the caretaker government system and increased the reserved seats for women in the Jatiya Sangsad from 45 to 50.
It also defined the unconstitutional usurpation of state power as a crime of treason, establishing severe penalties for those found guilty. Additionally, the amendment added a provision stipulating that elections must be held within 90 days following the end of a government’s term.