Desk Report

A Supreme Court lawyer Monday petitioned the High Court to cancel the election schedule for four city corporations and nine municipalities, set for Aug 4.

The bench of justices Syed Mahmud Hossain and Farid Ahmed briefly heard the writ petition filed by Giasuddin Ahmed.
 
The court is likely to issue an order on the petition Tuesday.
 
The petition was filed a day after Supreme Court lawyer and Jamaat-e-Islami leader Jasimuddin Sarker petitioned the High Court to freeze the city and municipality polls.
 
Senior advocate ABM Nurul Islam took part in the hearing on behalf of the petitioner, Giasuddin.
 
Nurul Islam termed the election schedule illegal and unconstitutional.
 
The lawyer argued in court that the announcement of an election schedule should be preceded by the publication of a final electoral roll.
 
"An election schedule cannot be announced without a voter list.
 
The announcement of a schedule for local government polls before the national polls was illegal, Islam said.
 
According to the constitution, the job of the caretaker government is to hold the national polls, not the local government polls, he added.
 
The petitioner also appealed to the court to issue a rule nisi asking the government to explain why the schedule for city corporations and municipality polls would not be cancelled.
 
The Election Commission announced the schedule on June 20 for elections to four city corporations and nine municipalities.
 
The government had earlier put into effect local government (City Corporation) and local government (Municipality) ordinances.