Staff Reporter :The High Court (HC) on Thursday stayed the election of Bangladesh Bar Council for three months in response to a writ petition, filed by a Supreme Court lawyer Eunus Ali Akond.The court also issued a rule upon the Government and the Bar Council authorities, seeking to know as to why the schedule of the council elections would not be declared illegal. The bench of Justice Quazi Reza-Ul Haque and Justice Abu Taher Md Saifur Rahman issued the rule, asking the Government and the Bar Council officials to give their reply within four weeks time. Eunus Ali Akond moved forward the writ petition on May 17, challenging the Bar Council elections, scheduled to be held on May 27. The HC heard the petition on May 18 and fixed Thursday to pass its order. Akond also filed another petition, questioning the prevailing procedures of the Bar Council election. He himself placed submission during the hearing on the petitions, mentioning anomalies in the existing voters list of the council.Hearing both petitions, the HC also asked the Bar Council authorities to explain as to why the amendment of Bangladesh Bar Council Act 2003, which limited a member to cast 14 votes, should not be declared illegitimate. Meanwhile, two separate appeals were filed with the apex court on Thursday against the High Court’s stay order on the bar council elections.Chamber Judge of the SC’s Appellate Division Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain received the appeals and sent those to the full bench of the apex court for hearing on May 24.The Secretary of the Bar Council and three candidates filed the appeals with the Chamber Judge. The schedule for the Bangladesh Bar Council elections was announced on March 25 and a list of 48,465 voters was published on April 9. But, five pro-Awami League elected members of Bar Council along with another 101 lawyers sent a letter to the chairman and the secretary of the Council, mentioning that the voters’ list was ‘vague’ with repetition of names. The Bangladesh Bar Council, instead of relying on its own documents, followed the list of the different bar associations to prepare the voters’ list, they said. The five lawyers are Syed Rezaur Rahman, HR Zahid Anwar, Abdul Matin Khasru, SM Mujibur Rahman and Tania Ameer.A total of 14 members are elected in the Bar Council elections. Of them, seven are elected through votes of registered lawyers, while each of the rest are elected by the seven regional bar associations of the country.The 14 elected members later cast their votes to elect a Vice Chairman. As per the regulations, the Attorney General acts as the Chairman of the Bar Council.
