Lawyers engage in fistfight over Supreme Court Bar Association elections results

Lawyers from both sides of the political divide engaged in a fistfight with each other at the Supreme Court premises centring on the results of the Supreme Court Bar Association elections that took place over a month ago.

The lawyers also vandalised the window glasses of the conference hall during the brawl which kicked off on Wednesday afternoon, reports bdnews24.com.

A group of lawyers loyal to the opposition BNP had intercepted a group of ruling Awami League-supporting lawyers, who were attempting to enter the conference hall to recount the ballots of the polling that took place on March 15 and 16.

The ballots, cast during the elections of the top lawyers’ panel in Bangladesh, have been kept in the conference hall.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the Awami League-supporting lawyers’ group, led by Md Ozi Ullah, a former SCBA vice-president, announced the formation of a new seven-strong Election Sub-Committee that will recount the ballots and declare results.

Before the actual election on March 15, another seven-member Election Sub-Committee, led by senior Supreme Court lawyer AY Mashiuzzaman, was formed to conduct the polls.

On March 17, right before the committee was about to announce the results, a candidate under the banner of an AL-backed lawyers’ group, known as Bangladesh Sammilita Ainjibi Samannaya Parishad (BSASP), had filed a written application with the sub-committee, demanding a recount.

The sub-committee had decided to pause the announcement of the results, and panel chair Mashiuzzaman stepped down.

Over a month after that incident, Ozi Ullah at a briefing on Tuesday claimed that a fresh seven-strong panel was formed on April 12 for a recount. Ozi Ullah said he will act as a convener for the fresh panel.

At the press conference, Ozi Ullah said: “Since April 16, I have sent notices to the secretary candidates of the competing sides and asked Mashiuzzaman [former election chair] to hand over the keys of the conference hall.”

Meanwhile, the current association secretary Ruhul Quddus Kazal dismissed the legitimacy of the new election sub-committee, claiming that Ozi Ullah and his group have no jurisdiction to conduct a recount as no such decision was made in any of the recent association meetings.

Kazal was running for another term in the election under the banner of the BNP-backed Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Oikya Parishad (BJAOP).

Former additional attorney general Md Momtaz Uddin Fakir and lawyer Md Abdun Nur Dulal were vying for the posts of president and secretary, respectively, from the BSASP, known as the White Panel.

Md Bodruddoza (Badal) was the presidential candidate for the BJAOP, known as the Blue Panel.