Appellate Division to deliver verdict on 15th Amendment appeals tomorrow
The appeals seek the annulment of the amendment in its entirety.
Appellate Division to deliver verdict on 15th Amendment appeals tomorrow
Court – Dhaka
TBS Report
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The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Tuesday fixed for tomorrow (9 July) to deliver its verdict on the appeals challenging the High Court judgment that declared parts of the Constitution's 15th Amendment unconstitutional and void.
The appeals seek the annulment of the amendment in its entirety.
"Hearing is concluded and judgment tomorrow," said the short order passed by the four-member Appellate Division bench headed by Chief Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury after three consecutive days of hearings.
Senior Advocate Sharif Bhuiyan appeared for the appeal filed by Shujon Secretary Badiul Alam Majumdar, Senior Advocate Mohammad Shishir Manir represented Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, while Barrister ASM Shahriar Kabir appeared for freedom fighter Md Mofazzal Hossain. Attorney General Md Ruhul Quddus Kajal represented the state.
The Appellate Division granted leave to appeal on 13 November, after which hearings on the appeals began.
The 15th Amendment was passed by the Jatiya Sangsad on 30 June 2011 and received presidential assent on 3 July 2011.
The amendment abolished the caretaker government system, granted constitutional recognition to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as the Father of the Nation, increased the number of reserved parliamentary seats for women from 45 to 50, restored secularism and freedom of religion, and reinstated nationalism, socialism, democracy and secularism as the fundamental principles of state policy.
It also classified the unconstitutional seizure of state power as treason punishable by the maximum penalty and amended the constitutional provision on parliamentary elections by requiring polls to be held within the 90 days preceding the expiry of parliament's term instead of within the 90 days following its dissolution.
In August 2024, five eminent citizens, including Badiul Alam Majumdar, filed a writ petition before the High Court seeking the annulment of the amendment. On 19 August that year, the High Court issued a rule asking why the amendment should not be declared inconsistent with the Constitution.
Later, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Jamaat-e-Islami Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar, Gono Forum and several individuals and organisations joined the proceedings as interveners. Freedom fighter Md Mofazzal Hossain also filed a separate writ petition.
Following hearings, the High Court on 17 December 2024 struck down several provisions, including those abolishing the caretaker government system, Articles 7A and 7B, Article 44(2) relating to enforcement of fundamental rights, and the repeal of the referendum provision under Article 142.
Badiul Alam Majumdar and others, Md Mofazzal Hossain, and Mia Golam Parwar subsequently sought leave to appeal. Counsel for the petitioners argued before the Appellate Division that the 15th Amendment should be annulled in its entirety.
