Supreme Court. File Photo

DHAKA, Feb 20, 2025 (BSS) - The appellate division of the Supreme Court (SC) today fixed February 25 for delivering the judgment on the reinstatement of 85 upazila election officers, who were sacked from the service during the period of the last caretaker government. 

Chief Justice Dr. Syed Reefat Ahmed has fixed the date after hearing separate appeals and review petitions filed by the lawyers of the sacked officers.

Senior advocate Salah Uddin Dolon represented the appellants during the hearing. Senior Advocate Prabir Niyogi and Md. Ruhul Quddus presented arguments in support of the review petitions. Additional Attorney General Anik R. Haque appeared on behalf of the state, while Advocate Mohammad Khalequzzaman Bhuiyan represented the Election Commission (EC). 

According to the prosecution, the Public Service Commission (PSC) on September 3, 2005, temporarily selected a total of 327 candidates for appointing them as upazila election officers. Among them, 85 persons were sacked from the service during the caretaker government in 2007. 

The Administrative Tribunal on March 23 in 2009 dismissed the appeals of the sacked officers. Later, they filed an appeal against the judgment of the tribunal, and the Administrative Appeal Tribunal on April 12 in 2010 granted the appeals and ordered the authorities concerned to reinstate them. But the state prosecution filed four leave to appeals before the appellate division against the judgment of the Administrative Appeal Tribunal. The chamber judge of the appellate division on April 29, 2010, effectively withheld the judgment of the tribunal and referred it to the regular bench of the appellate division. 

Later, the appellate division in 2011 granted the appeals, and on September 1, 2022, in a judgment, cancelled the reinstatement order of the Administrative Appeal Tribunal. The sacked officers in 2023 filed five review petitions and four appeals to the appellate division of the Supreme Court against the decision of the chamber court.