The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) on Tuesday cancelled the nomination papers of more than 20 candidates allegedly affiliated with the Awami League, barring them from contesting the upcoming SCBA election scheduled for May 13–14.
SCBA senior vice-president Md Humayun Kabir Manju told New Age that the move followed the interim government’s decision to ban the party’s activities.
He said the final list of candidates would include 14 from the BNP, 12 from Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, and several others aligned with the National Citizen Party.
Awami League-backed presidential candidate Md Munjurul Hoque Chowdhury criticised the decision, calling it contrary to the SCBA constitution.
However, Justice Md Miftah Uddin Choudhury, who heads the seven-member election steering committee, said the committee did not cancel the nominations. He maintained that such action would be illegal, as the SCBA constitution authorises the association’s secretary to scrutinise nominations and forward them to the election commission.
Earlier on Sunday, the SCBA ad hoc committee, at an extraordinary general meeting held at the bar auditorium, decided to bar pro-Awami League lawyers from participating in the election.
According to the decision, lawyers may still contest as independent candidates if they submit an undertaking stating they are not affiliated with the Awami League.
Humayun Kabir Manju said the decision was based on the ban imposed under the Anti-Terrorism (Amendment) Act, 2026.
He added that leaders and activists of a banned political party should not take part in elections until all legal proceedings, including those before the International Crimes Tribunal, are completed.
The amendment to the Anti-Terrorism Act, 2009—approved by parliament on April 8 following the February 12 general election—allows the government to suspend the activities of individuals and organisations accused of terrorism until their trials are concluded.
The SCBA election will elect 14 office-bearers, including the president and secretary.
