HC questions cancellation of JP leader's candidacy
The High Court has questioned the legality of a section of the Representation of the People Order (RPO), under which the candidacy of Abul Kashem from Tangail-5 constituency was cancelled and Mahmudul Hasan was declared elected.
The Election Commission (EC) on May 7 declared BNP leader Mahmudul Hasan elected MP from the constituency, and cancelled candidacy of Jatiya Party MP Abul Kashem, who was elected from the constituency in the parliamentary polls on December 29, 2008.
The EC issued a gazette notification to this effect on that day in line with a Supreme Court verdict that declared Kashem disqualified for contesting the 2008 polls, as he had been a loan defaulter then.
The HC on Tuesday issued a rule upon the CEC, secretary to the EC, and Mahmudul Hasan to explain in 12 days why the Section 51(2)(b) of RPO, 1972, which empowered the election tribunal to declare any other candidate securing second highest vote as returned, should not be declared contrary to the constitution.
In response to a writ petition, the HC bench of Justice AHM Shamsuddin Choudhury Manik and Justice Jahangir Hossain also asked them to explain why the notification issued by the EC declaring Mahmudul winner and canceling Kashem's candidacy should not be declared illegal.
Twenty five voters of Tangail-5 constituency have jointly filed the writ petition with the HC, challenging the legality the section of the RPO and EC's gazette notification.
They said Kashem had got 147,152 votes, while Mahmudul secured 72,805 votes in the 2008 polls. But the EC had declared Mahmudul elected under the RPO section, which is against the democratic spirit ensured in the constitution.
In the democratic system, the representatives will be elected by the majority votes of people, they said.
Assistant Attorney General Yeadia Zaman, who represented the government, told The Daily Star that the HC bench expressed the parliament speaker would not administer oath to Mahmudul Hasan till the hearing of the rule was finished.
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