SC bars BNP's Aslam from becoming MP

 
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that BNP leader Aslam Chowdhury cannot become a Member of Parliament despite winning the Chattogram-4 (Sitakunda) seat in the 13th National Parliament election, after cancelling his candidacy over allegations that he was a loan defaulter.

The verdict was delivered by a four-member Appellate Division bench headed by Chief Justice Zubair Rahman Chowdhury. The court had concluded the hearing on June 15 and fixed June 30 for pronouncing the judgment.

Following the ruling, the Election Commission (EC) said it would determine its next course of action after receiving the certified copy of the full judgment.

Election Commissioner Abdur Rahmanel Masud told the Daily Observer that the commission would strictly follow the court's directives.

"We will take further steps after receiving the copy of the judgment from the Court," he said.

The verdict has raised questions over whether a fresh election will be held in the Chattogram-4 constituency or whether the candidate who secured the second-highest number of votes will be declared elected. The EC said it would review the detailed judgment before making any decision.

The legal dispute began after Jamaat-e-Islami candidate Anwar Siddique Chowdhury and Jamuna Bank challenged Aslam Chowdhury's nomination, alleging that he was a loan defaulter. Although the Election Commission declared his nomination valid on January 18 and the High Court later upheld that decision, the Appellate Division granted leave to appeal on February 3.

The apex court subsequently allowed Aslam Chowdhury to contest the February 12 parliamentary election but ordered that publication of his election result would remain suspended until the appeal was finally disposed of.

Aslam Chowdhury won the election with 142,674 votes under the BNP's "Sheaf of Paddy" symbol, defeating Jamaat-e-Islami candidate Anwar Siddique Chowdhury, who received 89,268 votes with the "Scale" symbol. However, his result was never gazetted because of the court's earlier order.