The declaration came separately from a two-hour hunger strike at Bar association offices across the country in protest against recent amendments to the Civil Procedure Code (CPC) and the Bar Council order.

The Jatiya Sangsad passed the Bangladesh Legal Practitioners' and Bar Council (Amendment) Bill 2003 on Wednesday and the CPC amendment in July this year.

The Civil Procedure Code (Second Amendment) Act, 2003 will come into effect on October 1.

Moudud Ahmed, who moved the Bar council bill for passage, termed it "timely" and said: "The bill will enable Bangladesh Bar Council to ensure transparency and accountability and maintain a code of conduct for lawyers."

Anti-government lawyers in Dhaka observed the hunger strike at the district judge's court with a vow to resist the amendments and brought out a protest procession there. They also burnt some copies of the amended bills.

During the strike, the leaders of the committee urged the government to withdraw the Bar Council (Amendment) Bill and CPC (Amendment) Bill immediately, otherwise, they threatened to be on the streets until their demands were met.

The agitating lawyers also declared Moudud "unwanted" in Dhaka Bar Association and requested all other Bars to copy their move.

Different Bar associations yesterday observed the strike and declared the law minister 'unwanted' responding to Dhaka Bar's decision.

Advocates Syed Ahmad, Abdul Baset Majumdar, Ozaer Farooq, Khondker Mahbub Hossain, SS Halder, Abu Syed Sagar, Shamsud Ahmed Nilu, Kamrul Islam, Sahara Khatun, Yusuf Hossain Humayun, Abdullah Abu, Zead-Al-Malum and Bar Association Secretary Moklesur Rahman Badal spoke at the strike.

The Bar Council amendments provide for election of seven of its members, currently elected in nation-wide votes, through region-wise polls. No advocate would hold office or be member of the Bar Council for more than two consecutive terms.

The enrolment committee of advocates would be constituted with a chairman to be nominated by the chief justice from among the judges of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court (SC), a member to be nominated by the chief justice from among the judges of the High Court Division, the attorney general and two members elected by the Bar Council from among its members.

An advocate could be a member of more than one Bar association, but would not be a voter of more than one.

The lawyers alleged that the government was trying to establish its control over the Bar Council.

They also alleged that as the pro-Bangladesh Nationalist Party lawyers were always defeated in Bar Council elections, the government brought in the changes to capture the legal profession as part of its plan to cling to power.

Under the amended CPC, a plaintiff filing a false case will have to pay a fine of Tk 1 lakh, up from Tk 5,000 currently.

Anyone involved in an under-trial lawsuit will be subject to fines of Tk 1,000 to Tk 5,000 for any delay in submitting applications, prayers or counter affidavits.

The lawyers say some provisions of the amendment would prove burdensome to the poor and block their ways to justice. "The fines are too high," they say.

The second amendment to the CPC will open a floodgate of corruption in the lower judiciary, the committee leaders claim.

They demanded repeal of the amendment before it went into force on October 1.

Meanwhile, the leaders of government-backed lawyers held a separate rally on Dhaka judge court premises welcoming the passage of the bills.

They also announced a programme to hem in the Bar Council Bhaban on September 21 to press home their demands for dissolution of the sitting Bar Council committee and formation of a fresh one.

Advocates Fazlur Khan, Mohsin Miah, Sanaullah Mia, Masud Ahmed Talukder, Arfan Uddin Khan, Khorshed Alam, Harun or-ashid Khan and Ali Haider Kiran spoke on the event.

Meanwhile, at a press conference at the Sangsad Bhaban last night, Opposition Deputy Speaker Abdul Hamid demanded cancellation of bill claiming that the new law would jeopardise the independence of the profession.