Staff Reporter:
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court (SC) yesterday began its seventh day of hearings on an appeal challenging its previous judgment that abolished the non-party caretaker government system for holding national elections.
The full bench of the Appellate Division, headed by Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed commenced pro-ceedings around 9:30am.
Senior advocates Zainul Abedin and Md Ruhul Quddus Kazal took part in the hearing for the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which had filed one of the pleas in this connection. Advocate Abedin had be-gun his submissions on October 29.
Earlier, Advocate Mohammad Shishir Manir argued on behalf of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami on Octo-ber 28. Advocate Sharif Bhuiyan was the first to present arguments on October 21, on behalf of five distinguished citizens, and continued the following day. Barrister Ehsan Abdullah Siddiq also took part in the hearing as an intervener on October 23.
On August 27, 2025, the Appellate Division granted leave to appeal against its 2011 verdict that declared the 13th Amendment, introducing the caretaker government system, unconstitutional.
The court granted the order after hearing multiple review petitions seeking the reinstatement of the 13th Amendment and revival of the caretaker system.
Four review pleas were filed in total-by BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Jamaat Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar, five prominent citizens, including SUJAN Secretary Dr Badiul Alam Majumdar, and an individual petitioner. All are being heard together.
Previously, on December 17, 2024, the High Court had declared the abolition of the caretaker govern-ment system unconstitutional.
After the High Court judgment, Attorney General Md Asaduzzaman told reporters that the ruling effec-tively restored the caretaker provision as part of the Constitution.
