The High Court will deliver its order tomorrow on a writ petition challenging the constitutional validity of Article 70 and seeking a stay on the schedule for the upcoming presidential election.
The bench of Justice Khizir Ahmed Choudhury and Justice AFM Saiful Karim fixed the date after concluding hearings on the petition today.
Article 70 provides for the vacation of a parliamentary seat if a lawmaker resigns from or votes against the political party that nominated them.
During the hearing, Attorney General Md Ruhul Quddus Kazal strongly opposed the petition and urged the court to reject it, saying that the petition is not acceptable.
The attorney general also pointed out that petitioner Advocate Eunus Ali Akond had previously filed a similar petition before the High Court, which rejected the matter. Akond did not appeal against that verdict before the Appellate Division, he said.
Akond argued that Article 70 restricts lawmakers’ freedom to discharge their constitutional responsibilities and undermines the independence of parliament.
He filed the latest petition as a public interest litigation on August 13, seeking directions from the High Court on the legality of Article 70.
The petition asks the court to issue a rule requiring the authorities concerned to explain why Article 70 should not be declared unconstitutional and scrapped.
It also seeks an interim order staying the schedule for the presidential election, set for August 20, until the rule is disposed of.
FP/R
