Staff Reporter :
A one member High Court (HC) Bench on Monday once again felt embarrassed during hearing to dispose a rule issued previously on legality of retaining National Parliament’s membership by Nizam Uddin Hazari, an Awmai League leader from Feni.
The HC Bench of Justice Farid Ahmed sent the petition to the Acting Chief Justice Md Abdul Wahhab Miah for a decision as he felt embarrassed to hear. Now Justice Abdul Wahhab Miah will assign another HC Bench for its hearing and disposal of the petition, told Advocate Satya Ranjan Mandol, lawyer of the petitioner.
On December 6, in 2016, Justice Md Emdadul Huq and Justice FRM Nazmul Ahasan delivered a spilt verdict on a writ petition that challenged the legality of retaining National Parliament’s membership by Nizam Uddin Hazari.
Justice Md Emdadul Huq said in his part of the judgement that Nizam Uddin Hazari cannot hold the office of the Parliament Member as per Article 66(2)(D) of the Constitution as he is convicted in an arms case.
Meanwhile, Justice FRM Nazmul Ahasan said the writ petition is not acceptable, as there is a question of disputed fact regarding serving jail term by Nizam Uddin Hazari in the case.
After that spilt verdict the Chief Justice formed a one member bench to hear the case.
Advocate Satya Ranjan Mandol said, the HC Bench felt embarrassed to hear the case. Several HC benches felt embarrassed before to hear the case.
Shakhawat Hossain Bhuiyan, a Jubo League leader of Feni, filed the petition in public interest litigation with the HC on June 8, 2014 praying to the court to declare Nizam disqualified for contesting the parliamentary polls and holding the office as a lawmaker because of his alleged forgery in getting early release from jail in a criminal case.
Quoting a newspaper report, Shakhawat in his petition said, a Chittagong court sentenced Nizam to 10 years’ imprisonment in an arms case on August 16, 2000. He surrendered to the court on September 14, 2000, and was sent to Chittagong jail to serve his term.
But he obtained release order on December 1, 2005, through fraudulence, Shakhawat said.
Nizam was supposed to be in jail until September 13, 2010, and he, according to the law, was not supposed to be eligible to run in parliamentary polls before September 2015. Nizam provided false information about serving his jail term to the Election Commission, he added.
The HC issued a rule the same day asking the government and the Election Commission to explain as to why the ruling Awami League leader Nizam Uddin Hazari’s Parliament seat should not be declared vacant.
The office of Inspector General of Prisons has submitted a report to the HC on July 19 saying that Nizam Uddin Hazari had suffered in jail around 2.5 years less than he was supposed to serve in the arms case.
