The Appellate Division has released its full verdict overturning the High Court’s ruling that had declared Bangladesh Jamaat‑e‑Islami’s registration as a political party illegal.
The four‑member Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, led by the chief justice, announced the judgment on 1 June last year. It was published after signatures from the concerned judges.
Jamaat’s appeal against the High Court ruling was unanimously granted, and the leave‑to‑appeal petition was disposed of through this verdict. Earlier, on 1 August 2013, a three‑member High Court bench had declared Jamaat’s registration illegal by majority opinion.
In its verdict, the Appellate Division said the High Court’s ruling declaring the rule absolute was not justified. Accordingly, the 1 August 2013 judgment and order of the High Court Division were annulled.
Separately, on 12 December 2016, a full court meeting decided that the “daripalla” (scales of justice) symbol would be used exclusively in the Supreme Court’s monogram. It was resolved that no individual, institution, or political party could use the symbol, nor could it be allocated as an election symbol.
Following this decision, the Supreme Court administration later sent a letter to the Election Commission, directing it not to allocate the symbol to any political party or candidate. The EC subsequently removed the symbol from its list.
On 12 May last year, Jamaat filed an application with the Appellate Division seeking cancellation of the full court decision. The Appellate Division then allowed the application without any observation. As a result, Jamaat regained its registration as a political party along with its traditional “daripalla” symbol.
On 24 June, the Election Commission Secretariat issued a gazette notification in this regard.
