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The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has overturned the High Court's verdict declaring the registration of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami as a political party illegal. A full bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed gave the verdict on Sunday (June 1) after accepting the appeal filed by Jamaat.
The party's lawyers said that as a result of the verdict, Jamaat's registration granted by the Election Commission will be considered valid again.
Earlier, after the hearing on May 14, the Appellate Division set June 1 as the date for the verdict. Senior lawyers Ehsan A Siddique and Md. Shishir Monir participated in the hearing on behalf of Jamaat. Lawyer Touhidul Islam appeared on behalf of the Election Commission.
On November 4, 2008, the Election Commission temporarily registered Jamaat-e-Islami. However, in 2009, top leaders of Bangladesh Tariqat Federation, Zaker Party and Sammilit Islami Jote filed a writ challenging the party's registration. The then leadership of Jamaat and the Election Commission were made respondents.
In response to the writ, the High Court issued a rule on January 27, 2009. Jamaat later amended its constitution several times and submitted it to the Election Commission. On August 1, 2013, a larger bench of the High Court declared Jamaat's registration illegal based on a majority opinion.
The ruling said that the party's registration was granted outside the law. However, Jamaat was also given the opportunity to appeal. The Appellate Division initially rejected Jamaat's application, but later they filed a full appeal, which was now ruled acceptable.
After the Awami League came to power for the fourth consecutive term in 2024, the government banned Jamaat-e-Islami on August 1 in the face of student and public protests. But after the government fell on August 5, initiatives were taken to cancel the party's ban order, which was followed by the cancellation of the registration verdict.
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June 01, 2025
