HC order on Article 70 on Mar 18

The High Court will deliver its order on March 18 on a writ petition that challenged the legality of Article 70 of the constitution, which deals with the cancellation of membership of lawmakers for voting against their political party.

The bench of Justice Abu Taher Md Saifur Rahman set the date after concluding hearing arguments on the petition today.

Earlier on January 15, a two-judge HC bench gave a split order on the same petition.

On that day, Justice Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury, senior judge of the two-member HC bench, issued a rule on the government, asking why the article should not be declared unconstitutional, while Justice Md Ashraful Kamal, the other judge, summarily rejected the petition.

Article 70 says, lawmakers lose their seats in parliament if they vote in the House against the party that nominated them.

During hearing today, writ petitioner Advocate Eunus Ali Akond prayed to the HC to issue a rule asking the government to explain why the article should not be declared unconstitutional.

He said there are instances of scrapping the provisions of the 1972 constitution through amendment and the Supreme Court verdict.

Meanwhile, Attorney General Mahbubey Alam vehemently opposed the writ petition, saying that article 70 cannot be cancelled as it has been incorporated in the original constitution in 1972.

Advocate Eunus Ali submitted the writ petition with the HC on April 18 last year challenging the legality of Article 70 of the constitution saying that the article is against the democracy and Article 7, 19, 26, 27, 44, 31 and 119 of the constitution.