Former prime minister and leader of the opposition Khaleda Zia was convicted and sentenced to five years rigorous imprisonment and a fine in a graft case by a Special Tribunal in Dhaka on Thursday. With the Bangladesh general election slated to be held in January next year, this raises the question of whether the BNP chairperson will be eligible to participate in the polls.
Article 66 (2) (d) clearly states that if a person has been, on conviction for a criminal offence involving moral turpitude, sentenced to imprisonment for a term of not less than two years, unless a period of five years has elapsed since his or her release, then the person shall be disqualified from participating in elections and from being a member of Parliament.
As a result, Khaleda Zia’s sentence of five years imprisonment would at face value suggest that she will be ineligible to participate in the national election. However, this leaves out the matter of an appeal.
Also read- As it happened: Khaleda Zia in old central jail
Once an appeal is filed with a higher court challenging the legality of the conviction and sentence passed by the lower court, an application under Section 426 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is also required in order to suspend the conviction and sentence. If the appeals court (here the High Court Division) allows the application and suspends sentence, then there will be no bar against her competing in the forthcoming national election.
It is normal in any appeal to first apply for the leave-to-appeal to be admitted and then to pray for a stay of the judgment, conviction and sentence of the lower court. After the appeal is admitted by the higher court and lower court records are requested, then the application for bail for the appellant may proceed.
Allegations of corruption against politicians has become a common phenomenon in Bangladesh over the past few decades, and there is little example of them being held accountable to truly curb corruption. It almost seems as if the legal system is being used as a tool in a personal vendetta. In order to curb corruption, the system itself needs to be free of corruption first. The unfettered power conferred by the constitution on elected representatives remains a mockery of democracy, and will remain so unless the entire power structure is reorganized.
Wednesday, July 22, 2026
