Reviving caretaker govt system reflects people’s expectations: Shahdeen Malik
Eminent jurist Shahdeen Malik today said reviving the caretaker government system certainly reflects people's expectations.
"It will pave the way for a more democratic Bangladesh," said the constitution expert in his impromptu reaction to The Daily Star after a High Court verdict on the 15th amendment of the constitution.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. The HC today scrapped a part of the constitution's 15th amendment that cancelled the provision of the non-party caretaker government system and restored the provision of the referendum for bringing any amendment to the constitution.
The abolition of the non-party caretaker government system is void and unconstitutional as it destroyed democracy, free and fair elections, and the independence of judiciary which are the basic structures of the constitution, the court said.
Delivering the verdict on two separate writ petitions, the HC also struck down articles 7(A) and 7(B) of the Constitution, declaring them void and unconstitutional.
"Bringing back the provision for referendum is also certainly a welcome decision," said Shahdeen.
"Articles 7(A) and 7(B) were in conflict with the constitution, so it was expected that these would be declared unconstitutional," he added.
Article 7(A) of the Constitution pertained to the use of force and other unconstitutional means to "abrogate, repeal or suspend" the Constitution or any of its articles.
Article 7(B) makes certain parts of the Constitution unamendable "by way of insertion, modification, substitution, repeal or by any other means".
The HC declared unconstitutional the parts of the 15th Amendment Act, which scrapped the 13th amendment that had introduced the non-party caretaker government system in 1996, and brought significant changes to the charter.
In the verdict, the HC did not interfere in the provisions of the 15th Amendment Act which deals with the state principles including secularism, socialism, state region, nationalism, father of the nation and the number of reserved seats for women in parliament, saying that the future governments will decide these issues.
The 15th Amendment was passed in the parliament in 2011.
Comments