In a bold assertion of legal boundaries, Bangladesh’s Supreme Court Bar Association voted overwhelmingly to disqualify Awami League-aligned lawyers from its May 13-14 elections. The restriction, grounded in the 2009 Anti-Terrorism Act’s party ban, emerged from a heated extraordinary general meeting in Dhaka attended by nearly 300 members.
BNP supporter and SCBA senior vice-president Humayun Kabir Manju presided over the gathering, dominated by BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami sympathizers, per sources cited by The Daily Star. Secretary Barrister Mohammad Mahfuzur Rahman Milan explained the EGM was prompted by 100 members demanding action against League-backed candidates from groups like Sammilita Ainjibi Samannay Parishad.
The resolution prohibits these lawyers and officials from running but allows independents. Fourteen key positions, from president to secretary, are up for grabs in the one-year term vote. This comes amid outcry from Justice Makers Bangladesh in France (JMBF), which decried a pattern of irregularities and bias in bar elections nationwide.
JMBF highlighted police actions in districts like Munshiganj and Khulna targeting Awami League lawyers under BNP government influence. The group urged safeguards for democratic participation across religious lines. Awami League recently blasted the Anti-Terrorism Amendment Bill 2026 for entrenching its ban, calling it a shameful blow to democracy. As Bangladesh navigates post-uprising tensions, the SCBA’s stance signals how politics infiltrates even judicial bodies.
