The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Thursday allowed Bangladesh Cricket Board to hold its executive body election, which remained stalled following a High Court verdict.
The apex court also took up for hearing the two leave-to-appeal petitions filed by the National Sports Council and the BCB challenging the HC verdict that declared illegal the NSC’s action of amending the BCB constitution.
The Appellate Division, however, observed that validity of the BCB election results would depend on the outcome of its (AD) verdict on the appeals.
Rafique-ul Huq, Rokanuddin Mahmud and Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh appeared for the BCB, while attorney general Mahbubey Alam represented the NSC and Mahmudul Islam along with Mahbub Shafique and KM Hafizul Alam appeared for the writ petitioners.
Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh told New Age that the Appellate Division’s order paved the way for holding the BCB’s election under its constitution which was also approved by the sports’ regulatory body NSC making some change in it.
In a verdict the High Court on January 27 declared illegal the actions of the NSC that had given final approval of the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s constitution on November 29, 2012 by adding some amendments to it.
The HC pronounced the verdict after hearing a writ petition filed by Comilla District Sports Association’s general secretary Yousuf Jamil and BCB’s former executive member Mubasshar Hussain challenging the legality of amending the BCB’s constitution by the NSC.
The BCB in an Extraordinary General Meeting on March 1, 2012 made certain amendments to its constitution with the support of two-thirds of its councillors. It was sent to the NSC for approval and they handed it back to the BCB on October 21, 2012 with some recommendations.
The BCB had incorporated the recommendations and sent it back to the NSC for final approval.
However, they ignored the previous recommendations this time and brought some radical changes in the constitution. The new-look constitution was sent to the BCB on November 29, 2012.
BCB counsels submitted that the BCB president had been nominated by the government as per previous constitution framed in 2008. As per 2012 constitution BCB’s president is elected by the regional members.
‘The constitution was amended in 2012 in line with the requirement of International Cricket Council, which said BCB’s membership with the ICC would either be cancelled or suspended if the BCB constitution is not democratised,’ Rokanuddin Mahmud said.
‘If Bangladesh’s membership is cancelled or suspended, we will not be able to take part in any international cricket such as the ODIs or Twenty20 Internationals and the people in that case would come out in the streets and vandalise vehicles,’ he added.
In reply, writ petitioners’ counsel Mahmudul Islam submitted that the regional BCB members are elected by the deputy commissioners, who are appointed by the government. So the election process is not democratic.
Mahmud also submitted that the NSC had no right to bring changes to the BCB constitution as per its section 26. The right was only given to the BCB councillors and as the regulatory body the NSC can only approve it without bringing any fundamental changes.
The changes came within days after the BCB’s board of directors had completed their four-year tenure and a 13-member ad hoc committee replaced them on November 27, 2012.
In the amendments the post of senior vice-president was abolished and two councillors from each of the Super League clubs of the Dhaka Premier League were recommended against one in the previous constitution.
In another controversial move, the NSC also relaxed a clause about councillorship of the district and divisional organisations.
In the past it was mandatory for a councillor to be an executive body member of his respective district or divisional sports organisation, but in the amended constitution anyone was allowed to take councillorship from any district.
-With New Age input
