SCBA election begins

The two-day election to the executive committee of the Supreme Court Bar Association begins on Wednesday.

According to officials involved in conducting the election, 40 candidates are contesting for 14 posts and 11,097 lawyers are eligible to elect their representatives for the 2026–27 term.

The main contest is expected between candidates backed by the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party and those backed by the main opposition Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, as the ad hoc committee of the association disqualified Awami League-backed candidates during scrutiny.

Voting will take place at the association auditorium between 10:00am and 5:00pm each day, with a one-hour lunch break.

Although the election is supposed to be held annually, it is being organised after nearly two years following the fall of the Awami League regime on August 5, 2024 amid a student-led mass uprising.

Three panels are contesting in the election. They are the BNP-backed Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Oikya Panel, the Jamaat-backed Ainjibi Oikya Panel, and the National Citizen Party-backed Lal Shabuj Panel.

Under the BNP-backed panel, lawmaker AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon is contesting for president, while Mohammad Ali is contesting for the post of secretary.

From the Jamaat-backed panel, Abdul Baten is vying for the post of president and AKM Rezaul Karim Khandaker for the post of secretary.

The NCP-backed Lal Shabuj Panel announced a partial panel, nominating Azmal Hossain Bacchu for secretary and Mostafa Asgar Sharifi for assistant secretary.

Several independent candidates are also contesting for different posts, including Eunus Ali Akand for the post of president and Farhad Uddin Bhuiyan for the post of secretary.