HC rejects petition seeking cancellation of Tabith’s candidacy

The High Court yesterday cleared the way for BNP-nominated candidate Tabith Awal to continue contesting as mayoral candidate for Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) election, scheduled to be held on February 1.

The court summarily rejected a writ petition which sought cancellation of Tabith Awal’s candidacy, claiming that Tabith concealed information in the affidavit he submitted to the Election Commission about his wealth in Singapore.

The HC order said there are only four days left before the DNCC election and that the EC has no scope to examine the authenticity of allegation brought in the petition before the election.

The HC also observed that any contesting candidate can raise dispute over Tabith Awal’s concealing information about his wealth to the EC after the election is held, and its result is published.

The bench of Justice JBM Hassan and Justice Md Khairul Alam passed the order and made the observations after hearing arguments from counsels of the writ petitioner and Tabith Awal.

Tabith’s lawyer Barrister Rokanuddin Mahmud told The Daily Star that there was no legal bar for his client to continue contesting as a mayoral candidate in the upcoming DNCC election following the HC order.

AHM Shamsuddin Choudhury Manik, a former judge of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, who filed the writ petition told The Daily Star that he will move an appeal before the Appellate Division challenging the HC order, and seeking cancellation of Tabith Awal’s candidacy.

Justice Shamsuddin submitted the petition to the HC on January 26 for its directive on the EC to probe the allegation against Tabith Awal of concealing information about in his wealth in Singapore in his affidavit submitted to the EC, and to cancel his candidature if the allegation is found true.

During yesterday’s hearing, petitioner’s lawyer Qumrul Haque Siddique told the court that Tabith Awal and two others have a private company named NFM Energy Singapore Ltd in Singapore, but Tabith Awal did not mention it in his affidavit, which is a violation of the rules and laws concerned.

Advocate Qumrul requested the HC to order the EC to enquire the allegation against Tabith and to submit the inquiry report before this court.

Meanwhile, Rokanuddin Mahmud opposed the writ petition saying the documents submitted by the writ petitioner are not original, as those where downloaded through a computer.

He requested the HC not to entertain the writ petition, as the schedule for the DNCC election has already been declared and there are only four days left before the election.  

Barrister Rokanuddin cited article 125(c) of the constitution that says, “A court shall not pass any order or direction, ad interim or otherwise, in relation to an election for which schedule has been announced, unless the Election Commission has been given reasonable notice and an opportunity of being heard”.

The lawyer also said the writ petitioner has no locus standi (right or capacity to bring an action or to appear in a court) to move such a petition, as he (Justice Shamsuddin) is not contesting the upcoming DNCC election.