Defeat in Bar Council Poll
Pro-liberation lawyers blame 'internal rift'
Stating that the defeat in the July 18 Bangladesh Bar Council election was “for internal rift”, pro-liberation lawyers yesterday emphasised staying united to protect the country from “national and international conspiracy”.
Several leaders of Sammilito Ainjibi Samannoy Parishad (SASP) made the appeal in SASP's extended meeting in the capital's Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) auditorium.
The meeting also criticised the absence of three SASP leaders -- Law Minister Shafique Ahmed, Attorney General Mahbubey Alam and the council's immediate past vice-chairman Abdul Bashet Majumdar -- in the meeting.
Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Oikya Panel, a body of BNP-led 18 party alliance lawyers, won nine out of 14 posts in the poll.
SASP leader Rokanuddin Mahmud stated an allegation, raised by several lawyers outside the capital, that some central leaders sent them letters asking not to vote for SASP candidates and join yesterday's meeting.
“Why did he (the attorney general) not join the meeting? I suspect that he might be behind the distribution of the letters. He could have attended the meeting and proven that he was not involved,” he said, raising similar questions on the law minister's absence.
SASP Member Secretary Subrata Chowdhury said, “We are lost for words to condemn the negative activities and conspiracies of some our friends in the election.”
SASP Convener M Amir-Ul Islam said a quarter was hatching national and international conspiracies and SASP member Shah Jikrul Ahmed said a vested quarter was trying to create a division in SASP's unity.
Talking to The Daily Star, Shafique said his SCBA membership was suspended, as per the organisation's rules, after he became a minister. “As a minister, I can not attend such meetings.”
Mahbubey Alam said he was not invited to the meeting as he, on several occasions, had asked to reshuffle SASP's committee. “Those (Rokanuddin's comments) are absolutely false and a propaganda to publicly humiliate me.”
Abdul Bashet, president of Bangabandhu Ainjibi Parishad, one of SASP's five component organisations, said four of the component organisations were not informed of the meeting in “due time.”
“We did not take part in the meeting as it was organised unilaterally,” he said.
SASP leaders Dr Kamal Hossain, Shahara Khatun, Abdul Matin Khasru, Yusuf Hossain Humayun and Additional Attorney General MK Rahman were present at the meeting.
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