HC to hear challenge against 15th amendment on Oct 26

The High Court has scheduled October 26 for the next hearing in a constitutional petition challenging a provision of the 15th Amendment that empowers the Speaker of Parliament—instead of the Chief Justice—to administer the oath of office to the President.

To aid in resolving this significant constitutional issue, the court has appointed seven distinguished legal experts as amicus curiae (friends of the court) to provide independent legal opinions.

The appointed jurists are Senior Advocate Zainul Abedin, Dr. Shahdeen Malik, Barrister Mahbub Uddin Khokon, Advocate Probir Neogi, Advocate Ahsanul Karim, Barrister Mostafizur Rahman Khan and Barrister Jyotirmoy Barua.

The bench, comprising Justice Shashank Shekhar Sarkar and Justice K. M. Zahid Sarwar, issued the order on Thursday, August 14. Barrister Omar Faruk represented the petitioner during the proceedings.

The writ petition was filed on March 10 by lyricist Shahidullah Farazi, who is seeking the restoration of the original 1972 Constitution’s provision, under which the Chief Justice administered the presidential oath.

Following a preliminary hearing, the High Court issued a rule on March 11, calling for legal justification on two key questions:

Why the provision introduced by the 15th Amendment—replacing the Chief Justice with the Speaker—should not be declared inconsistent with the original spirit and framework of the 1972 Constitution;

Why this part of the amendment should not be declared void ab initio (from the outset) on constitutional grounds.

The court has directed the Law Secretary, the Cabinet Division Secretary, and the Registrar General of the Supreme Court to submit their responses.

The case has drawn significant legal and public interest, as it touches upon core principles of constitutional continuity, separation of powers, and the integrity of state institutions.