Former prime minister Khaleda Zia is barred from Bangladesh elections

For the first time in her three-decade-long political career Khaleda Zia is destined to play no direct part in the parliamentary polls as she has lost her appeal with the Election Commission to overturn the cancellation of her nominations.

This means the three-time former prime minister will not be able to run for parliament in a major blow for the BNP.

Her party was hoping that the decision would be overturned on appeal, but the Election Commission announced on Saturday that it had rejected her plea.

The BNP chief can challenge the decision in the court. However, the Supreme Court recently announced that no candidate sentenced to two or more years in prison will be allowed to run in the election.

The 72-year-old was sentenced to prison in the Zia Orphanage Trust case in February. She was handed another jail term in the Zia Welfare Trust case.

Since then BNP lawyers have claimed that Khaleda would be able to compete in the general election by appealing the trial court’s decision.

But several other BNP leaders have taken similar cases to court and been shut out from election.

According to the High Court’s decision, under section 66 (2) (d) of the constitution, a nominee sentenced to two or more years in prison may not compete in elections unless their prison sentence is overturned and stayed by a higher court on appeal.

Another High Court judge gave a differing opinion in one case, but the Appellate Division overruled it.

Khaleda had been chosen as a BNP nominee for the Feni-1, Bogura-6 and Bogura-7 seats. The returning officers for the three seats rejected her nomination on Dec 2.

She had led her party and allies to a surprising boycott of the previous general election but was  elected from all three seats in 2008. The former prime minister had run from five different seats since the 1991 elections and won all of them.

BNP leaders have claimed that the government officials who handled the applications had rejected her nomination under directions from the ruling Awami League.

Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi had expressed his hope that the EC would deliver them ‘justice’ by restoring Khaleda's nomination.

An appeal board led by Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Huda heard an appeal against the rejection at the EC offices on Saturday. Khaleda was represented by former attorney general AJ Mohammad Ali.

After the hearing the EC said that it would announce its decision later on.

A delegation from the Awami League then visited the EC and asked them not to give in to pressure.

The commissioners then announced that it had rejected the BNP supremo's nominations for all three seats on Saturday evening.

The lawyers for Khaleda Zia react to EC judgment on her candidacy

Awami League-backed lawyers react to EC judgment on Khaleda Zia's candidacy

KHALEDA’S CANDIDACY VALID: MAHBUB TALUKDAR

CEC Huda and election commissioners Rafiqul Islam, Kabita Khanam and Shahadat Hossain Chowdhury ruled the returning officer’s decision correct when it was put to vote.

Election Commissioner Mahbub Talukdar, however, differed.

Later, EC Secretary Helal Uddin Ahmed announced the result of the voting, declaring Khaleda ineligible for the election.

But, the lawyers for Khaleda, around a dozen in number, cheered and left the room for the hearing when Mahbub Talukdar said, “It’s my judgment. I am giving this in favour of granting Khaleda Zia’s appeal considering the legal aspects.”    

Secretary Helal tried to stop the counsels for Khaleda, saying it was not the entire commission’s verdict, but the lawyers had already left the room.

Awami League-backed lawyers, including Yusuf Hossain Humayun, were in the room.

A hullaballoo started when the lawyers from the two sides began hurling comments at each other.

Yusuf later told the media: “There is nothing to shout about or debate as all the election commissioners baring one dismissed the appeal. Everyone must accept it.”

“She (Khaleda) can’t contest in the election and it's legal,” he added.

Zainul Abedin, a lawyer for Khaleda, told the media that the EC had accepted her appeal.

“We don’t know what happened after we left. There is no legal scope for something else to happen after we left,” he said, arguing that the entire commission was silent when Mahbub Talukdar pronounced his verdict.

“It proves that they agreed with the judgment,” he added.

Mahbub Uddin Khokon, another counsel for Khaleda, said, “Now there is no bar on madam to contest in the election. Mahbub Talukdar’s judgment is fair and legal.”

When his attention was drawn to the other commissioners’ verdicts, he asked, “Is there any scope of announcing a verdict for the second time once it is delivered?”

He also said they might move the High Court after analysing the EC ruling.

The BNP, however, has kept backup candidates in the three seats Khaleda wanted to fight for.

The alternative candidates are Juba Dal leader Rafiqul Islam Majnu for Feni-1, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir for Bogura-6, and Gabtoli Upazila Parishad Chairman Morshed Milton for Bogura-7.