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The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Sunday deferred the hearing on four separate review petitions, filed challenging its verdict that annulled the caretaker government system, until May 8 this year.
A three-member bench of the Appellate Division, headed by Justice Ashfaqul Islam, set the date after hearing a time-prayer filed by the state.
On February 11, the hearing of the review petitions was deferred for two weeks by the apex court.
BNP - represented by its Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami - represented by its Secretary General Miah Golam Porwar, five prominent citizens including Shushashoner Jonno Nagorik secretary Dr Badiul Alam Majumdar, and freedom fighter Md Mofazzal Hossain filed four separate petitions after the regime change last year.
Following a writ petition, the High Court on August 4, 2004 declared the 13th Amendment of the Constitution valid and constitutional. Later, an appeal was filed against the verdict. The Appellate Division announced the verdict on May 10, 2011, scrapping the caretaker system.
After the verdict, the 15th Amendment Act was passed by the Jatiya Sangsad on June 30, 2011, addressing several issues, including the abolition of the caretaker government system. A gazette notification was published to this effect on July 3, 2011.
No review petition was filed, challenging the verdict, until the Sheikh Hasina regime change.
Civil society members Dr Badiul Alam Majumdar, Dr Tofail Ahmed, M Hafizuddin Khan, Md Jobirul Hoque Bhuiyan and Zahrah Rahman filed a petition on August 27 last year, while BNP filed a petition on November 16, and Jamaat filed a petition on October 23, challenging the apex court's verdict.
Additional Attorney General Aneeq R Haque appeared in the court hearing on behalf of the state, while lawyer Ruhul Quddus Kazal appeared for BNP, and lawyer Mohammad Shishir Manir for Jamaat.
The caretaker government system was included in the Constitution in 1996 through the 13th Amendment. Later, Supreme Court lawyer M Salimullah and others filed a writ petition with the High Court in 1998, challenging the legality of this amendment.