Dhaka, Nov 05 (V7N) – The appeal hearing on restoring the non-partisan caretaker government system has entered its eighth day at the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court.

On Wednesday (November 5), Barrister Ruhul Quddus Kajal presented arguments on behalf of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) before the full bench headed by Chief Justice Dr. Syed Refaat Ahmed.

During Tuesday’s (November 4) seventh day of the hearing, senior BNP lawyer Zainul Abedin stated that if the caretaker government system is reinstated, it should take effect from the 14th parliamentary election.

In Wednesday’s session, Barrister Kajal argued that the judgment abolishing the caretaker system was influenced by the personal preferences of former Chief Justice ABM Khairul Haque. Lawyers representing Jamaat-e-Islami and Sujan had earlier presented legal arguments supporting the system’s restoration.

The Supreme Court granted permission on August 27 to review the 2011 judgment that abolished the caretaker government system and allowed the filing of appeals. The petitioners include Dr. Badiul Alam Majumder, five others, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, and Jamaat Secretary General Golam Parwar.

It may be recalled that in 2011, the Appellate Division led by Chief Justice ABM Khairul Haque ruled to abolish the caretaker government system based on a majority opinion, leading to significant political debate over its implications for free and fair elections.

END/SMA/AJ