Bar Council elections today

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Bangladesh Bar Council (BBC), a statutory body regulating the lawyers, goes to polls today (Thursday) to elect its 14 members with three panels running the race, reports UNB.
Seven of the members would be elected to general seats and one each to another seven regional groups' seats.
The elected members in their first meeting will elect a vice-chairman for the Council and constitute other standing committees to run the institution for the period of three years from the date of takeover.
The Attorney General, the chief law officer of government, is the ex-officio chairman of the Council.
According to BBC, nearly 29,750 voters from 79 bar associations across the country will cast their vote at their respective bars and on civil-court premises.
It said all preparations for holding the election properly have been made appointing 134 judicial officers as presiding officers to conduct the election at 77 vote centres across the country.
"The voting kicks off at 10.00 am and will continue up to 5.00 pm without break," added a BBC release.
Attorney-General Salahuddin Ahmed in a statement sought "all-out cooperation from all concerned in making the election a success".
Three panels- Sammilita Ainjibi Samannoy Parishad led by incumbent Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) president Barrister Shafique Ahmed, Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Oikya Panel led by senior advocate ABM Nurul Islam and Ainjibi Oikya Panel led by Advocate KM Zabir- are contesting the election.
The last election to the Council was held on May 13, 2004.
Now the Council runs by an ad hoc committee constituted by the government since July 1 last year after the expiry of the term of the elected body.
An official of the Council told the news agency that its election could not be held as per the set rule due to "strict enforcement of the state of emergency".