Caretaker govt reinstated: How will the system be implemented?

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has delivered a verdict restoring the constitutional provisions for the Non-Partisan Caretaker Government (NPCG) system, but specified that the system will only be fully implemented and operational starting from the 14th Jatiya Sangsad Election.

A look back at caretaker governments throughout the years

The full bench, led by Chief Justice Dr Syed Refaat Ahmed, unanimously ruled to set aside the 2011 judgment that had abolished the NPCG. The court stated that the previous judgment was "tainted by several cited errors apparent on the face of the record," and declared that the NPCG system, inserted via the 13th constitutional amendment in 1996, has been "activated and revived".

Why the delay?

Crucially, the apex court specified a "prospective effect" for the ruling, meaning the system will not apply to the election due next year.

• The 13th parliamentary election, due in February next year, will be held under the incumbent interim government led by Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus.
• The 14th parliamentary election will be the first to be serviced by the restored caretaker government system.

This phased approach is constitutionally necessary.

As pointed out by lawyers like Sharif Bhuiyan, the legal mechanism required to form the NPCG — specifically the requirement to form it within 15 days of the dissolution of parliament — can no longer be triggered, as the parliament was dissolved more than a year ago after the Hasina-led Awami League government was toppled in the face of the July Uprising.

After elected govt comes

Attorney General Md Asaduzzaman confirmed this, stating that the Appellate Division gave a "prospective effect" to the ruling. "The caretaker government system will come into effect after the next parliament, formed in the upcoming election, completes its term," he said.

The AG hailed the verdict, declaring the system to be "supportive of Bangladesh's democracy," and noted that the system introduced through the 13th amendment has now been declared constitutional.

"From today, the people of Bangladesh will be able to cast their own votes in the future; there will be no voting at night before election day, and no dead people will be able to come to vote. We believe Bangladesh has now begun its journey on a truly democratic highway," he added.

Lawyers for the political entities involved echoed this sentiment. Advocate Mohammad Shishir Manir of Jamaat-e-Islami confirmed that the NPCG system has been "automatically reinstated" and will become effective from the 14th JS polls.

Barrister Ruhul Kuddus Kajal, a lawyer for the BNP, called the judgment the "latest verdict of the Supreme Court" and asserted that, as a result of the ruling, people's voting rights have been re-established.