The vacation bench of Justice Nizamul Huq and Justice Zafar Ahmad set the date on Tuesday after hearing the petitions filed by Supreme Court Lawyer Yunus Ali Akhand and Daily Morning Post Editor and Publisher Habibul Bashar.
Akhand, known for pressing such petitions, moved the court on Mar 14 while Bashar filed his appeal four days later on the same subject. Akhand himself argued the case at Tuesday’s hearing.
Akhand wants a ruling as to why an order should not be given to initiate dialogue between Awami League President Sheikh Hasina and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia along with heads of other political parties to end the current turmoil and ensure a free and fair national election.
He named the ruling Awami League-led 14-Party alliance, the 18-Party combine that BNP leads, the Election Commission, and the government as defendants in his petition.
Parliament on June 30, 2011 passed the 15th constitutional amendment, scrapping the caretaker government provision.
Since then, BNP has been demanding restoration of the constitutional provision that mandates an elected government to transfer power, on completion of its term, to an unelected non-partisan caretaker administration to oversee balloting to elect a new parliament.
The Supreme Court on May 10, 2011 declared the caretaker government system illegal, but said it could be retained for two general elections for the sake of "safety of the state and its people".
Diplomats and business leaders have been calling upon the two top leaders to start a dialogue to resolve the political deadlock over the arrangements for conducting the next parliament elections.
Awami League General Secretary Syed Ashraful Islam recently said the government was ready to
at any place – in or outside Parliament – for talks but said it will have to be ‘unconditional’.
But, Khaleda later
for holding talks with what she terms a ‘killer government’ and called for its ouster.
