11 Jamaat MPs move HC against ministers’ district roles

Bangla Press Desk: Eleven Jamaat-e-Islami MPs have moved the High Court challenging a government decision to assign ministers, state ministers and parliamentary whips responsibility for overseeing and coordinating activities in different districts.

The lawmakers argue that the arrangement has no legal basis and risks creating a parallel layer of authority over local government.

The writ petition was filed on Sunday, according to Muhammad Nazibur Rahman, the MP for Pabna-1 and the first petitioner.

It challenges an Aug 27 notification issued by the Cabinet Division assigning 30 ministers, state ministers and whips responsibility for government activities across all 64 districts.

Under the notification, they are to oversee matters including law and order, efforts to curb corruption and drugs, good governance, transparency, accountability and development projects.

The petitioners have asked the court to issue a rule asking why the notification should not be declared to have been issued without lawful authority.

They have also sought an interim order suspending it until the case is disposed of.

‘No Legal Basis’

The petition argues that neither the Constitution nor any law gives ministers, state ministers or parliamentary whips authority to supervise government activities in individual districts.

It says the notification relies on the Rules of Business, 1996, and a 2003 High Court judgement, but contends that neither gives the cabinet secretary the power to make such assignments.

The Rules of Business can regulate how executive functions are distributed and carried out, but cannot create powers that do not otherwise exist under the Constitution or statute, according to the petitioners.

They also cite Articles 59 and 60 of the Constitution, which deal with local government.

According to the petition, assigning ministers and whips district-level responsibilities creates an additional layer of central government oversight and could undermine the constitutional distinction between national administration and local self-government.

The MPs say it could also create a form of “dyarchy”, or dual administration, at the local level.

They further argue that ministers and state ministers cannot directly or indirectly assume responsibilities belonging to local government institutions.

Earlier Arrangement Struck Down

Lawyer Mohammad Shishir Manir, who is representing the petitioners, said similar responsibilities had been assigned to political officeholders in 1991 and 2001.

The legality of such an arrangement was later challenged by then-MP Anwar Hossain Manju.

Manir said the High Court subsequently declared a similar notification assigning ministers and other political figures responsibility for particular districts illegal and without lawful authority.

The petitioners argue that the Aug 27 notification conflicts with that ruling.

Manir said the latest notification referred to the earlier case but had nevertheless recreated essentially the same arrangement.

He questioned what role would remain for local government institutions if ministers, state ministers or whips were tasked with overseeing development projects or taking part in, or chairing, district-level meetings on law and order.

Ministers have national responsibilities, and assigning them separate districts creates a dual structure that is inconsistent with the constitutional framework, he said.

Describing the notification as “old wine in a new bottle”, Manir said: “Whether under Sheikh Hasina, under me, under you, or under any government, what is illegal is always illegal. This is a clearly unconstitutional step taken by the government.”

What the MPs Are Seeking

The petition asks the High Court to declare the Aug 27 notification to have been issued without lawful authority and to have no legal effect.

It also seeks suspension of the notification while the case is pending.

The petition notes that the applicants were elected MPs on Feb 12, 2026, with the results gazetted the following day, and have been serving in parliament since taking oath on Feb 17.

It says they already raise issues concerning their constituencies in parliament and bring them to the attention of the relevant ministries.

Along with Muhammad Nazibur Rahman of Pabna-1, the petitioners are Mir Ahmad Binquasem of Dhaka-14, Md Golam Rabbani of Rangpur-5, Md Nurul Islam of Chapainawabganj-3, Md Masud Parvez of Chuadanga-1, Muhammad Azizur Rahman of Jashore-1, Sheikh Manjurul Haque (Rahad) of Bagerhat-2, Md Shafiqul Islam of Patuakhali-2, Md Rashedul Islam Rashed of Sherpur-1, Salah Uddin of Gazipur-4 and Mohammad Zahirul Islam of Chattogram-16.