High Court Division of Bangladesh's Supreme Court on Tuesday partially repealed the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution and restored the non-partisan, neutral caretaker government system, lawyers said. The High Court bench comprising Justices Farah Mahboob and Debashish Roy Chowdhury pronounced the verdict. The main part of the judgment was read out by Senior Justice Farah Mahboob. Perusing the judgment, the court said that the caretaker government was based on political consensus. Therefore, it has become the basic basis of the Constitution.
Beauty of Constitution is Empowerment of its People
The High Court, in its observation, observed that the basic structure of the Constitution was destroyed by the Fifteenth Amendment. But the Fifteenth Amendment will not be repealed entirely. The court also said that the basic structure of the Constitution is democracy. Only fair and acceptable elections can establish democracy. The beauty of the Constitution is empowerment of people, people are the source of all power. The Supreme Court of Bangladesh ruled in 2011 to abolish the caretaker government system by the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution of Bangladesh.
On December 16, Bangladesh's Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus said that Bangladesh's next general elections could be scheduled between the end of 2025 and the first half of 2026. He made the statement during his address to the nation on Victory Day, marking Bangladesh's victory in the 1971 Liberation War. In his address, Yunus stressed on the importance of political consensus to move the elections forward. "If the political consensus allows us, again, to hold elections on the basis of accurate electoral rolls with some corrections, it may be possible to hold elections by the end of 2025," he said.
Might be Determined in the First Half of 2026
However, Yunus admitted that additional time may be required to implement the necessary reforms. "And if we add to this the extent of reforms required in terms of the electoral process and the recommendations of the Electoral Reforms Commission, it may take another six months depending on it," he added. He clarified that the timeline for the elections could be decided between the end of 2025 and the first half of 2026. "Broadly speaking, the timeline for elections could be between the end of 2025 and the first half of 2026. His remarks came amid political instability in Bangladesh. On August 5, the student-led movement ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from power after weeks of protests and violence, which led to the deaths of over 600 people. Hasina fled to India and the interim government led by Yunus took over.