HC rejects plea seeking stay on Dhaka city polls

The High Court today cleared the way for the Election Commission to hold two Dhaka city corporation elections scheduled to be held on April 28.

The HC bench of Justice Quazi Reza-Ul Hoque and Justice Abu Taher Md Saifur Rahman rejected the writ petition filed seeking a stay on the election of Dhaka South City Corporation and Dhaka North City Corporation.

There is no legal bar for holding the elections to the bifurcated Dhaka city polls, the petitioner, Eunus Ali Akond, a Supreme Court lawyer, told The Daily Star following the HC order.

In the writ, the petitioner challenged the legality of the Local Government (City Corporation) (Amendment) Act, 2011 on which the Dhaka city corporation was divided into North and South because the related provision (section 3) of the Local Government (City Corporation) Act, 2009 that sets the Dhaka city corporation as a unitary body, was not changed.

Akond has also challenged the provisions of security money and purchasing voter lists by the candidates.

The petitioner prayed to the court to issue a rule upon the government and the election commission to explain why the relevant rules and the amended act, for holding the elections to the two city corporations should not be declared illegal.