The High Court on Sunday directed the government to explain why indirect zila parishad polls would not be declared unconstitutional.
The bench of Justice Quazi Reza-Ul Hoque and Justice Mohammad Ullah passed the order after hearing a public interest litigation writ petition filed by Supreme Court lawyer Eunus Ali Akond.
Secretaries of the cabinet division, law ministry and, local government, rural development and co-operatives ministry, and the chief election commissioner are asked to come up with explanations within four weeks.
The bench ordered analogous hearing of the present writ petition and previous writ petition challenging constitutionality of Zila Parishad Act.
The court, however, refused to stay on the zila parishad elections scheduled to be held on December 28.
In 2000, former Bangladesh Nationalist Party MP and SC lawyer Khairul Enam filed the first writ petition challenging the District Council Act immediately after it was enacted providing for holding indirect district council elections.
After hearing his writ petition, a bench of Justice Mainur Reza Chowdhury and Justice Md Muzammel Hossain issued a rule on July 19, 2000, asking the government to explain in three weeks why the newly enacted Zila Parishad Act would not be declared illegal.
According to the latest writ petition filed by Eunus, Article 11 of the constitution of the republic only permits holding direct elections in Bangladesh.
Eunus submitted that indirect elections would forfeit the people’s democratic right to vote in the district council elections.
Holding indirect elections would be a violation of the Article 59(1) of the constitution which requires, he said, manning each tier of the republic’s local government by elected persons.
Source: New Age
