Former telecoms minister Abdul Latif Siddique has to appear before the Election Commission (EC) in a hearing over his parliamentary membership.
Published : 20 Aug 2015, 01:06 PM
He was sacked from the Cabinet last year for his controversial comment on Hajj and subsequently expelled from the Awami League.
Siddique moved the High Court challenging the EC’s move, but his petition was rejected on Thursday by the bench of Justice Md Emdadul Huq and Justice Muhammad Khurshid Alam Sarkar.
“The notice sent to Latif Siddique by the election commission is legal. It’s the EC who will resolve this matter,” said Deputy Attorney General Khorshedul Alam, who argued for the state on Thursday.
If Siddique has a point to make, that can be done during the EC’s hearing. So, the court scrapped his petition, Alam said.
Siddique’s counsels are, however, yet to decide on challenging the High Court order.
“We will decide on filing an appeal after consulting the client,” said barrister Jotirmoy Barua.
Tangail- 4 MP Siddique was in jail for almost nine months in several cases accusing him of ‘hurting religious sensitivities’ until he was released on bail in June this year.
On July 5, eight months after his expulsion, Awami League’s letter notifying Parliament of Siddique's ouster from the party reached Speaker Shirin Sharmin Choudhury. After that, the EC moved to resolve the matter.