The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a High Court ruling declaring several provisions of the 15th constitutional amendment illegal, effectively restoring the caretaker government system and the referendum. Law Minister Mohammad Asaduzzaman, responding to the ruling, said the next general election would be held under a caretaker government.

The Appellate Division, led by the chief justice, upheld the High Court ruling declaring several provisions of the 15th constitutional amendment, including the abolition of the caretaker government system, illegal. Lawyers said the order effectively restored the constitutional provisions on referendums and the caretaker government system.

“Appeal is dismissed”, read each of the three identical short judgments delivered by the four-member Appellate Division bench headed by Chief Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury.

Attorney General Md Ruhul Quddus Kazal said the Appellate Division, by dismissing the appeals, upheld the High Court’s judgment reinstating the caretaker government system and the referendum.

Law Minister Md Asaduzzaman told reporters at the secretariat that holding the next parliamentary election under a caretaker government was “a political commitment”.

“The caretaker government system is a fruit of the BNP’s movement,” the minister said. He added that the final decision on whether the election would be conducted under a caretaker government or an interim government would be taken after consulting all sections of society.

Commenting on the 15th amendment, Asaduzzaman said it had introduced provisions that had “buried Bangladesh’s democracy” and created a process to make “fascists” permanent. Referring to the case, he said that while he was attorney general, Badiul Alam Majumdar and others had challenged the amendment. He added that the submissions made at the time were based on the position that those amendments had become a burden on the people of Bangladesh and that an interim government was inevitable.

The law minister said amendments to the Constitution would be guided primarily by the “July Charter”. He said the government would examine how the amendments could be made more relevant to the people and beneficial for the country, democracy, the rule of law and justice, and would place a bill before parliament following public consultation.

Asaduzzaman said the judgment referred to 54 issues that would be addressed with priority given to the July Charter, and that it had fulfilled public aspirations in at least four areas.

He said the question of whether there would be a caretaker government or an interim government would be decided through discussions with all stakeholders in light of the judgment. He added that the referendum issue would also be reviewed and that a constitutional amendment committee would be formed after the full judgment was received.