Terming erroneous the 10th parliament election, noted jurist Dr Kamal Hossain on Wednesday asked for fresh parliamentary election or else he said the people of the country and history ‘would not exonerate us’.
He came up with the view while submitting arguments for the second day before the High Court as an amicus curiae (friend of the court) on a public interest litigation writ petition (PIL) challenging the validity of the section 19 of the Representation of the People Order empowering MP candidates to be elected unopposed.
Prior to the election, he mentioned, it was said that let an election be held now and there could be another election dissolving the 10th parliament if there is an agreement.
Dr Kamal, also Gonoforum president, was very critical of the role of the incumbent Election Commission (EC), and said the EC should have asked for seeking opinion of the Supreme Court, and still there is such scope over the disputed issue.
Replying to the Prime Minister’s oblique remarks on Kamal Hossain’s MP election unopposed in 1970 national election, he said, “Yes I had been elected unopposed in a by-election. In the election, I was the chief election agent of Father of the Nation Bangabahdhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and he nominated me to contest the by-election.”
The sanctity of the 1970 election has been defiled by comparing it with the 2014 parliamentary elections, contended Dr Kamal. “We‘ve lost all values.”
He further said the EC is constitutionally pledged bound to hold a free and fair election and it has to comply with the constitutional responsibility.
Mere publication of the election results in the official gazette is not the task of the EC, said Kamal Hossain, adding, as a result, someone might get the wrong idea to describe the EC as a post office, he added.
Dr Kamal said since the country enjoys the multiparty democracy, there must be an opportunity to exercise franchise of each of the nine crore voters. The representative character of democracy remains when the scope of participation of people is ensured, he argued. “An election can’t be called an election where 80 percent voters don’t participate.”
Other amicus curiae Dr Badiul Alam Majumder, a rights activist, also made his submission.
The hearing before the HC division bench comprising Justice Mirza Hossain Haider and Justice M Khurshid Alam Khan remained inconclusive.
The hearing began on May 29.
On December 17, 2013, Jatiya Party (Japa) leader Khandker Abdus Salam filed the writ petition in the form of public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the validity of the section 19 of the RPO empowering MP candidates to be elected unopposed.
Earlier, the HC had appointed seven people as amici, including Dr Kamal, in aid of the court with arguments over the pending writ.
The remaining amici are Barrister M Amir-Ul Islam, Barrister Rafique-ul Huq, Barrister Moudud Ahmed, Barrister Rokanuddin Mahmud, Barrister Ajmalul Hossain QC.
Source: UNB Connect
