The High Court is set to issue an order today regarding the writ petition filed seeking to prevent BNP leader Ishraq Hossain from being sworn in as the mayor of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC).
The High Court bench of Justice Md. Akram Hossain Chowdhury and Justice Debashish Roy Chowdhury will deliver the order on Wednesday (May 21).
The same bench set this date on Tuesday (May 20) afternoon, after concluding the hearing. Advocate Mohammad Hossain argued for the writ, while Deputy Attorney General Mahfuzur Rahman Milan represented the state, and Barrister Mahbub Uddin Khokon argued on behalf of Ishraq.
The writ petition was filed with the High Court on May 14, seeking a directive to prevent BNP leader Ishraq Hossain from being sworn in as the mayor of Dhaka South City Corporation. The petition also sought punitive action against the judge of Dhaka's First Joint District Judge and Election Tribunal, Md. Nurul Islam, who declared Ishraq Hossain, a member of BNP's foreign affairs committee, as mayor.
Md. Mamunur Rashid, a resident of Dhaka South City Corporation, filed the writ in the relevant High Court branch. The applicant's lawyer is Kazi Akbar Ali.
The Dhaka South City election was held on February 1, 2020. Awami League's Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh became mayor, defeating BNP's Ishraq Hossain by a margin of nearly 175,000 votes. On March 27, the judge of Dhaka's First Joint District Judge and Election Tribunal, Md. Nurul Islam, nullified the result declaring Fazle Noor Taposh victorious in the 2020 Dhaka South City Corporation election and declared BNP leader Ishraq as mayor.
Upon receiving a copy of the tribunal's verdict, the constitutional body sought advice from the Law Ministry on April 22 regarding the publication of a gazette. Subsequently, on April 27, the Election Commission (EC) published a gazette declaring Ishraq Hossain as the new mayor of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC).
Meanwhile, sit-in programs have been ongoing for several days, demanding that Ishraq be installed as the mayor of Dhaka South City Corporation.
