A lawyer for Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami on Monday hoped that the Home Ministry would soon revoke its August 1 gazette banning the party and its student organization Islami Chhatra Shibir.
The ban was imposed after the party and its organisation were accused of inciting violence during the student protests and uprisings that began on July 1, and of being directly involved in the killing of students and others, as well as the destruction of state property.
The Jamaat demanded the lifting of its ban after the student movement triggered the overthrow of Sheikh Hasina’s government on August 5.
Jamaat lawyer Mohammad Shishir Manir informed reporters at a press conference on Monday that the party leadership had held a series of meetings with the relevant advisers of the caretaker government to discuss the legal implications of Section 18(1) of the Anti-Terrorism Act, which led to the ban on the party.
“We have requested the Interior Ministry to lift the ban after these talks and the ministry has stated that the ban will be lifted in a new gazette on Tuesday or as soon as possible,” Shishir said.
He said the Jamaat would also approach the Appellate Division for reconsideration of its application for leave to appeal after the court dismissed the appeal due to non-appearance of its lawyer.
Earlier, the Election Commission had cancelled the registration of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami as a political party following a writ petition filed by the Supreme Court. The Jamaat had petitioned the Appellate Division to set aside the Supreme Court’s verdict.
The Home Ministry issued a notification under the Anti-Terrorism Act 2009 after the 14-party alliance led by the ruling Awami League passed a resolution to this effect on July 29.
