Law Adviser Asif Nazrul said the 15th Amendment was the 'strongest evidence' that the fallen Awami League government had tried to turn of oppression into a constitutional power.
The controversial amendment was passed in June 2011 under the Awami League. However, on 17 December 2024, the Supreme Court of Bangladesh declared it partially illegal. The High Court restored the provision for referendums on constitutional amendments, repealed Articles 7A and 7B, and voided the abolition of the non-party caretaker government system.
"The 15th amendment stands as the strongest evidence that the Awami League implemented their authority as constitutional power, using it to oppress the people," he said.
He made the remarks during a discussion on Tuesday at the Supreme Court Bar Association's Shahid Shafiur Rahman Auditorium.
"The 15th Amendment introduced provisions that prevent any future amendments to the Constitution. Such provisions also exist in Pakistan and serve to effectively tie the hands and feet of the citizens, restricting their democratic rights."
Terming the amendment 'terrible', the adviser said, "Sometimes I thought, did the Awami League make such an amendment out of stupidity or arrogance? I think it was arrogance."
Muhammad Ekramul Haque, professor and dean of the Department of Law at the University of Dhaka, called the amendment illegal, saying it had no basis.
"[It said] under Article 7(B) that the constitution shall not be amendable by way of insertion, modification, substitution, repeal or by any other means. This is totally unjustified."
Badiul Alam Majumdar, chief of the Election Reform Commission, shared his personal motivation for filing a petition against the 15th amendment.
"No parliament has the authority to restrict the power of future parliaments. Doing so could stifle political and institutional development."
Barrister Sara Hossain, senior advocate of the Supreme Court and honorary director of BLAST, presided over and moderated the discussion.
"The 15th amendment turned discussions about the constitution into offences punishable by death."
Justice MA Matin said that when a government takes on the role of an oppressor, it becomes the moral duty of the people to overthrow it.
"While the people of Bangladesh have historically removed oppressive regimes, a truly new democratic structure has yet to take root. But meaningful change will come in the future," he said.
The event marked the publication of the book "Revolutionary Constitutionalism and Why it Was Essential to Declare the Fifteenth Amendment Unconstitutional" by Supreme Court Senior Advocate Sharif Bhuiyan.
Comments