Another democratic institution stunted

One can now put two and two together and link the passage of Zila Parishad (Amendment) Act, 2022 on April 5, making provision for the appointment of administrators to the local government body, with the government's latest decision to dissolve zila parishads. Needless to say, it was an unconstitutional act that violates the essential fabric of the local government, which cannot be run by unelected individuals. The said act has made provisions for the government to appoint administrators in zila parishads whose members, under the law, shall cease to hold office after the expiry of their five-year tenure. Articles 11 and 59 of the constitution have been grossly violated here.

The timing of the act and the dissolution of the 61 zila parishads soon thereafter have raised many questions that do little credit to the government's intentions. We believe that the argument that elections to district councils could not be held due to the pandemic is a fig leaf of an argument that betrays the government's purpose. When the height of the pandemic could not prevent the Election Commission from organising elections in so many union parishads, what could have possibly prevented them from holding the zila parishad elections, except ulterior motives?

In this context, reference to the scrapping of Amendment 13 of the constitution by the High Court, which did away with the caretaker government, is in order. The caretaker government system was declared null and void on the grounds that the country would be without elected representatives during its tenure. What will happen now? The backbone of our democracy, the local government, and that too the district councils, will now be run by unelected representatives, maybe for an unlimited period, till elections can be held to the district councils, whose tenure has expired. We believe that a government committed to the rule of the people would have amended the constitution in a manner that would have seen the continuation of elected representatives in office even after the expiry of their tenure due to force majeure, like a pandemic, instead of making unconstitutional provisions.

The concatenation of recent events cannot but create misgivings in the minds of the public that the government is undertaking these measures with an eye on the upcoming general election. We suggest that the government reconsider its decision and revert to status quo ante before the passage of the Zila Parishad (Amendment) Act, hold the zila parishad elections with the elected representatives. Democracy in Bangladesh has suffered many setbacks. Let it not suffer another. It is the people who should run their affairs as per their fundamental rights, not somebody imposed by the administration.