‘Takeover-style’ election at Dhaka Bar this month

BD Digest Report

There have been allegations of unprecedented chaos surrounding the elections of the ‘Dhaka Bar Association’ (Dhaka Bar), known as the country’s largest bar association. After occupying the bar for a long time, general lawyers have accused the government of finalizing the design of ‘occupation’ in the name of direct elections.

Although the 2026-2027 election for the association is scheduled to be held on April 29 and 30, there are allegations that a plan is being made to ensure a one-sided victory before the election by preventing the majority of general members and independent candidates from submitting their nomination papers.

There have been allegations that the election process is being conducted in a very secretive and arbitrary manner, disregarding the constitution of the association. General lawyers claim that no general member or independent candidate, who is outside the sphere of influence of the current ad hoc committee, has been allowed to collect nomination forms.

This ‘form syndicate’ was formed primarily to ensure that no one other than the nominated candidates of BNP, Jamaat and NCP could contest the elections.

There has been no elected committee in the Dhaka Bar for 20 months since the August 5th coup. BNP-Jamaat-affiliated lawyers had formed an ad hoc committee to keep this large institution under their control. According to ordinary lawyers, instead of holding elections in accordance with democratic norms, the current occupying party has now staged a drama to install their loyalists in power through ‘uncontested’ or ‘name-call’ elections.

Several senior lawyers, including Obaidul Haque, have alleged that a large section of the Dhaka Bar, which has around 30,000 members, has been strategically kept away from voting and the right to stand as candidates. They have termed the electoral process as ‘autocratic’.

Lawyers say that the professionals who fight to establish the rule of law are now undermining the rule of law and the constitution in their own backyard.

According to the announced schedule, the voting is scheduled to be held on April 29 and 30 from 9 am to 5 pm. There have been allegations that the election drama has been orchestrated under the leadership of Chief Election Commissioner Advocate Alhaj Md. Borhan Uddin. Although the last date for collecting and submitting nomination forms has passed, many eligible candidates have not received their forms.

The question of ordinary lawyers is: Why is this ‘terrorist occupation’ of the lifeblood of lawyers’ organizations not stopping while the election drama is going on regarding the second highest constitutional position in the country? If this tyrannical election process is not quickly canceled and everyone is not given the opportunity to participate, the deprived lawyers have warned of a major movement at the Dhaka Bar Association premises.