Path ‘opens’ for mayoral election to Dhaka North

The High Court scrapped a stay order on the by-elections for a new mayor of Dhaka North City Corporation, lawyers have said.

A previous court order had halted the polls to elect a mayor for Dhaka North and councillors for new 18 wards following a writ petition last year. 

On Wednesday, the bench of Justice Gobinda Chandra Tagore and Justice Mohammad Ullah issued an order to scrap the rule after the petitioner’s lawyer did not show up in court.

But the impasse may continue if the court allows any request by the petitioners for further hearing. But the petitioners are no longer interested in pursuing their pleas, said their lawyer Ahsan Habib Bhuiyan.   

The Election Commission had last year announced that mayoral by-polls for Dhaka north and the 18 wards will be held on Feb 26.

Dhaka North has been without a mayor since Mayor Annisul Huq in 2017. But the process was halted after Ataur Rahman and Jahangir Alam, Union Council chairpersons of Bhatara and Beraid, had filed the petition challenging the decision over their unions being added to Dhaka as city corporation wards.

Ataur and Jahangir are general secretaries of Bhatara and Beraid unit of the BNP and the Awami League respectively.

After hearing their petition, the High Court bench comprising Justice Naima Haider and Justice Zafar Ahmed stayed the mayoral by-polls and elections to 18 new wards in the city corporation for six months on Jan 17 of last year.

The High Court also issued a rule asking the Election Commission to explain why the election schedule should not be declared beyond its legal purview.

Following an appeal by the Election Commission, the Supreme Court's Appellate Division ordered the High Court to quickly settle its ruling concerning the by-polls for Dhaka North mayor.

In keeping with the apex court’s order, the High Court bench of Justice Gobinda Chandra Tagore and Justice Mohammad Ullah took cognizance of the matter on Wednesday.

But the ruling was scrapped as both the petitioners and the Election Commission failed to appear before the court.

“There are no legal restrictions to holding the elections now. But there is still scope for the respondents to revive the ruling,” Kazi Mainul Hasan, the lawyer representing the Local Government Division, told bdnews24.com.