The full verdict of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh reinstating the caretaker government system in the Constitution has been published.
The 74-page judgement was released on the Supreme Court’s website on Sunday. The verdict was written by former Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed, who delivered the ruling on 20 November.The non-party caretaker government system was introduced in Bangladesh in 1996 through the 13th Amendment to the Constitution during the tenure of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party government.
However, in 2011, during the rule of the Awami League government, the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court declared the 13th Amendment unconstitutional, effectively abolishing the caretaker government systemFollowing the fall of the Awami League government, a petition was filed during the tenure of the interim administration seeking a review of the 2011 verdict. The apex court subsequently decided to rehear the appeal.
After fresh hearings, the court declared the earlier ruling that scrapped the 13th Amendment unlawful and ordered the restoration of the non-party caretaker government system for overseeing national elections.
