President Mohammed Shahabuddin has thrown himself into question by making contradictory remarks about the resignation of Sheikh Hasina as prime minister of the fallen Awami League government with various quarters now seeking his own resignation.
Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Adviser Asif Nazrul on Monday said the President has lied about the resignation of Sheikh Hasina and breached his oath of office with such statements.
President Shahabuddin has recently said he has no documentary evidence of the resignation of Sheikh Hasina, who fled to India on 5 August in the face of a mass uprising spearheaded by students, as the PM.
“I’ve heard that she has resigned. However, I don’t have any documentary proof. Despite trying hard, I couldn’t obtain it,” he told Manab Zamin Chief Editor Matiur Rahman Chowdhury, who met the President to learn about the resignation letter.
“Perhaps she didn’t get time,” Shahabuddin said, according to a write-up, based on the conversation, published in the daily’s political magazine “Janatar Chokh” on 20 October.
In response to a question during a press briefing at the Secretariat on Monday, Asif Nazrul termed Shahabuddin’s recent statement about the resignation of Hasina ‘false’.
“The President said that he didn’t receive the resignation letter of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. It’s a lie and tantamount to breaching his oath. Because he himself said in his address to the nation at 11:20 pm on 5 August, flanked by the chiefs of the three forces, that the former prime minister submitted her resignation letter to him and he accepted it,” he said.
The law adviser said after that, he (President) asked the Appellate Division to exercise advisory jurisdiction as per Article 106 of the constitution about what should be done in this situation. “In view of this, the then Chief Justice and all other judges together gave an opinion under 106 based on the reference of the President. The first line was ‘in the current emerging situation of the country following the resignation of the prime minister…. then other things’.”
He said, “This reference has the signatures of all the judges of the Appellate Division, including then Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan. On the basis of the opinion of the Appellate Division, we sent a note from the ministry to the office of the President that an interim government can be formed in the perspective that the prime minister has resigned and the President has dissolved Parliament. The President saw and accepted this opinion. He then formed the interim government.”
Asif Nazrul said it has been clearly proven through one after another function that he has confirmed and reiterated to the entire nation that the prime minister has given her resignation and he has accepted it. “Now after two and a half months, if he says that the prime minister has not submitted his resignation, it’s a kind of self-contradiction, it’s the breach of his oath. There’re questions about whether he has the qualifications to hold this position.”
He said, “The constitution of Bangladesh says that if you (Shahabuddin) have no physical and mental capacity or you’ve committed serious misconduct, then our constitution has the scope of taking action on whether you can remain as President. It’s not understandable how he (President) can say this. There’s no scope for him to give self-contradictory speeches. If he is firm about his statement, we have to consider in a meeting of the advisory council whether he’s qualified to hold the position of President.”
The law adviser said if the President creates controversy about what he said before the nation, it is akin to misconduct. “Then the question comes whether you have the mental capacity to carry out the duties of the president. He has created the scope for these questions to come.”
In response to a question, he said at a time when the fallen fascist forces are making various efforts at different places to raise their heads, suddenly after two and a half months, the President is making such statements, raising questions about his intention.
BNP Standing Committee member Hafiz Uddin Ahmed on Monday said discussions relating to Sheikh Hasina’s resignation reflect a new conspiracy as her quick flight is a clear document of her resignation from the post of prime minister.
“She (Hasina) has definitely resigned and there’s no doubt about it. We saw the resignation paper signed by Sheikh Hasina on YouTube. There’s no need for an official resignation since she fled the country with just 45 minutes’ notice. This itself constitutes her resignation,” he said while addressing a discussion in the capital.
BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi at a programme in Savar said President Shahabuddin, who was a Chhatra League man in his academic life, is now ‘hatching’ a conspiracy to rehabilitate deposed PM Sheikh Hasina.
“The President is more willing to fulfil the duties to the Awami League than to the nation. At the beginning of the student-people uprising, he didn’t say anything. But now he is gradually speaking as a follower of Sheikh Hasina. We have to see if he is involved in any kind of plot,” he added.
Talking to reporters on the Supreme Court premises, advocate Zainul Abedin, president of the Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Forum, said the President should resign on his own for speaking the ‘untruth’ about the resignation of Sheikh Hasina. “If the President says anything else about Sheikh Hasina’s resignation deviating from his address to the nation delivered on 5 August, he should resign,” he added.
Meanwhile, coordinator of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement Sarjis Alam said students will decide what action needs to be taken against the President for his recent remarks.
“Hasina has been ousted, the people have overthrown an illegal government through an uprising. There’s no question of any resignation letter here,” Hasnat Abdullah, another coordinator of the platform, claimed in a Facebook post.
In the interview with the Manab Zamin chief editor, the President also said, “Around 10:30 am on 5 August, a call came from the Prime Minister’s residence [Ganabhaban] to the Bangabhaban. It was said that the PM would visit the Bangabhaban to meet the President. Upon hearing this, preparations began at the Bangabhaban. Within an hour, another call came saying she would not be coming.”
“When General Waker, the army chief, came to the Bangabhaban, I tried to find out whether the PM had resigned. The answer was the same: I heard that she had resigned. It seems that she didn’t have time to inform,” the President was quoted as saying.
During the conversation, he also told the Manab Zamin chief editor that the Cabinet secretary came to collect a copy of the resignation letter one day when everything was under control. “I told him that I was also looking for it,” the President added.
President Shahabuddin said there is no longer any debate about it. “The prime minister has left and that’s the truth. To prevent any further questions, I also sought the opinions of the Supreme Court,” he said.
What the constitution says
According to the constitution, the office of the Prime Minister shall become vacant if he/she resigns from office at any time by placing their resignation in the hands of the President or if he/she ceases to be a Member of Parliament.
It will also become vacant if the prime minister ceases to retain the support of a majority of the Members of Parliament, he/she shall either resign office or advise the President in writing to dissolve Parliament and if he/she so advises the President shall, if he/she is satisfied that no other Member of Parliament commands the support of the majority of the members of Parliament, dissolve Parliament accordingly.
Courtesy: Daily Sun.
Bd-pratidin English/Tanvir Raihan
