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Court declares Ishraque Mayor of DSCC

He demands trial of 3 ex-CECs

Published : Friday, 28 March, 2025 at 12:00 AM  Count : 175
Court Correspondent
A Dhaka court has declared BNP leader Ishraque Hossain as the Mayor of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC), nullifying the 2020 election results. The ruling, delivered on Thursday by Judge Md. Nurul Islam of Dhaka's First Joint District Judge and Election Tribunal, also voided the government's gazette that had declared Awami League's Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh as mayor.

Ishraque had contested the 2020 DSCC election as the BNP candidate but lost to Taposh. Alleging irregularities and corruption, he filed a lawsuit on March 3, 2020, seeking the annulment of the election results. The case named eight defendants, including then-Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Huda, Returning Officer Md Abdul Baten and Taposh.

Ishraque's lawyer, Taherul Islam Tauhid, said, "We challenged the election due to fraud and irregularities. The court ruled in our favour, declaring Ishraque Hossain as the Mayor."

The verdict follows a similar ruling in October last year, when a Chattogram election tribunal nullified the 2021 Chattogram City Corporation election results and declared BNP's Shahadat Hossain as the Mayor.

With this ruling, Ishraque Hossain is set to assume office as the Mayor of Dhaka South city.

bdnews24.com adds: Ishraque Hossain has demanded that three former chief election commissioners be brought to trial following a court ruling in his favour regarding the results of the Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) election.

"They were constitutionally empowered to work independently, without any external influence. But they failed in their duties. A judicial process should begin against them," he said.

The three former CECs he referred to are - KM Nurul Huda, Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad, and Kazi Habibul Awal.

Their commissions oversaw three disputed elections under the Awami League government.

During the DSCC election on Feb 1, 2020, Nurul Huda served as the CEC.

Ishraque contested the mayoral race but lost.

The Awami League's Fazle Noor Taposh was elected mayor with over 400,000 votes, while Ishraque, the BNP candidate, secured 236,000 votes.

Citing irregularities and corruption, Ishraque filed a case on Mar 3, 2020, seeking to have the results annulled.

After five years, against the backdrop of a change in power, the Dhaka First Joint District Judge and Electoral Tribunal's Judge Md Nurul Islam delivered the verdict on Thursday.

The court's ruling annulled the government-issued gazette declaring Taposh as mayor and instead declared BNP's Ishraque the rightful winner.

Ishraque, a BNP International Affairs Committee member and son of former mayor Sadeque Hossain Khoka, was present in court when the verdict was announced.

Expressing his immediate reaction, he said: "I thank Almighty Allah. I have received justice. Whether I assume office as mayor or take an oath is entirely a party decision."

Highlighting his allegations regarding the 2020 election, he said: "The entire nation witnessed broad daylight vote rigging. From the beginning, we had complained about obstacles in our campaign. BNP councillor candidates were arrested without cause."

"Our processions were attacked. Many activists were beaten and left bleeding. On election day, when journalists visited polling stations with us, they found centres had not opened even by 9:30am. Some stations were open for just over an hour before they were shut again," he said.

"Through massive fraud, my actual vote count was manipulated. Throughout the day, they fabricated figures to inflate their votes. That's why we went to court at the time, and today, the court has delivered its verdict," he added.

Calling the ruling a victory for justice, he added: "Justice must be restored in Bangladesh. Every citizen should have access to fair trials. This judicial process that began after the fall of the murderous, autocratic, fascist Hasina (Sheikh Hasina) must continue. Our ultimate goal is to ensure justice at all levels."


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