The High Court is set to deliver its verdict on a writ petition that challenged the legality of Jamaat-e-Islami's registration as a political party today.
A larger HC bench comprising Justice M Moazzem Hossain, Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Kazi Reza-Ul-Haq will pass the verdict.
On June 12, the same HC bench concluded the proceedings as the submission of the arguments from all the sides completed. However, the HC bench did not fix any date or time for pronouncing the verdict.
On January 27, 2009, a two-member bench issued a rule asking the Election Commission (EC) to explain why the registration given to Jamaat as a political party should not be declared ultra vires to the Constitution.
In reply, the EC admitted that some provisions of Jamaat's charter are against the country's constitution and Representation of the People Order (RPO) while Jamaat claimed the EC had not done any illegality by registering the party.
The EC on November 4, 2008, issued the registration for Bangladesh Jamaat as a political party.
On January 25, 2009, challenging the EC's decision, Syed Rezaul Hoque, a central leader of Tarikat Federation, filed the writ petition seeking court's order on EC to cancel its (Jamaat-e-Islami) registration.
The writ petition said the EC's decision of registering Jamaat as a political party is contrary to the RPO. It said Jamaat could not be registered as a political party for at least four specific grounds.
Explaining the causes, the petition said Jamaat-e-Islami does not believe in principle that people are the main source of power.
It said according to RPO, any communal party cannot be registered as a political party, but Jamaat in its action proved it as a communal party.
According to the provisions of RPO, no political party can make any disparity between religions, sexes and castes while selecting its leadership, but Jamaat does not allow non-Muslim and woman to be a leader of the organisation, the petition claimed.
No branch of any political party can function abroad, but Jamaat is maintaining its foreign branch and also claimed that the organisation was born in India, the petition said.
Barrister Tania Amir moved the petition while Barrister Abdur Razzak appeared for Jamaat and Advocate Mohsin Rashid stood for EC.
