The Appellate Division of Bangladesh’s Supreme Court ordered the reinstatement of Jamaat-e-Islami’s registration as a political party, making it legal to contest in polls. In the Sunday ruling, the court ordered the Election Commission (EC) of Bangladesh to implement the order without any delay.
However, the court did not issue any order regarding the party’s electoral symbol, the scales. Instead, the court left the matter of the symbol to the Election Commission. The Sunday judgment was delivered by a four-member Appellate Bench headed by Chief Justice Dr Syed Refaat Ahmed. The ruling overturned the ban imposed by the High Court on the party.
According to Bangladeshi news outlet The Dhaka Tribune, the Jamaat-e-Islami party was represented by Barrister Ehsan Abdullah in the court. On August 1, 2013, the Bangladeshi High Court declared Jamaat-e-Islami’s registration illegal. The party was declared illegal in response to a writ petition.
The fall of the Awami League led to the rise of JeI
Following the 2013 judgement, on December 7, 2018, the Election Commission issued a gazette officially cancelling Jamaat’s registration. The party soon appealed the High Court’s ruling.
However, in November 2023, due to the absence of Jamaat’s principal counsel during the hearing, a six-member Appellate Division bench led by then-Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan dismissed the appeal, stating that the case was “dismissed for default.” As a result, the Jamaat’s registration remained invalid in effect.
Things changed for JeI after the fall of the Awami League-led government; the party applied to have their appeal, seeking reinstatement of their registration, revived. The Appellate Division eventually accepted the party’s petition, and Advocate Mohammad Shishir Monir appeared at the hearing on behalf of the party. With the JeI now declared legal, the next election in Bangladesh would have another old party contesting against the BNP.