Sarjis Alam, one of the key coordinators of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, on Monday announced filing a writ petition in the High Court seeking a temporary suspension of all political activities by the Awami League until the court issued a ruling on the validity of the last three general elections under the party.
The legitimacy of the three elections came under question in another petition, which asks why the last three general elections conducted by the Awami League administration should not be declared invalid and why any benefits gained unlawfully should not be returned.
Sarjis made the announcement in a Facebook post following media reports stating that he and Hasnat Abdullah, convenor of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, had filed a writ petition in the High Court seeking an order to ban the Awami League as a political party, requesting a halt to all of the party’s activities.
There was no mention in the writs of banning the party or revoking its registration, Sarjis said.
Earlier, on October 23, the interim government issued a gazette banning the Chhatra League, the student wing of the Awami League, designating it a “terrorist organization.”
The Anti-Discrimination Student Movement had issued an ultimatum to the government to ban the Chhatra League.
Notably, the High Court on September 1 dismissed a writ petition seeking a ban on the Awami League and the cancellation of the party’s electoral registration for its alleged involvement in killings during the recent student-led movement.
Attorney General Md Asaduzzaman represented the state, while Arifur Rahman Murad Bhuiyan appeared as the petitioner.
On Aug 19, Arifur, executive director of the rights group SARDA Society, filed a writ petition seeking the ban.
During the preliminary hearing on August 27, the attorney general urged the court to dismiss the petition, adding that the interim government had no intentions of banning any political party.