BNP leader Ishraque Hossain has served a reminder legal notice to the LGRD ministry, seeking sworn-in as Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) mayor.
Ishraque sent the notice through his counsel Barrister AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon, also a BNP leader and president of Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA).
The notice warned that appropriate legal action will be taken against the Local Government, Rural Development, and Co-operatives (LGRD) secretary if his office does not administer the mayoral oath to Ishraque under Section 7(2) of the "Local Government (City Corporation) Act 2009".
The notice was sent on Monday (yesterday) morning following a previous legal notice that was issued on May 21.
Receiving opinion from the law ministry, following an election tribunal (lower court) verdict -- which declares Ishraque as DSCC mayor -- the Election Commission (EC) on April 27 issued a gazette notification, announcing him as mayor.
However, writ petitioner Mamunur Rashid filed a leave-to-appeal petition on Monday with the Appellate Division seeking a stay on both the gazette notification and the lower court verdict.
Mamunur's lawyer Mohammad Hossain told the reporters that the Chamber Judge of the Appellate Division may hold hearing on the petition on Tuesday.
On May 22, the High Court (HC) summarily rejected Mamunur Rashid's writ petition, which had sought a stay on the lower court judgment and the EC's decision, clearing the way for Ishraque to be sworn in as DSCC mayor.
Meanwhile, supporters of Ishraque and a section of DSCC employees resumed their protest in front of the Nagar Bhaban, following a 48-hour pause, demanding that Ishraque be officially appointed as mayor without further delay.
Ishraque's supporters have been demonstrating since May 14 demanding that he be sworn in and given the responsibilities of the city mayor.
Awami League candidate Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh was elected mayor and sworn in to take office following a DSCC election held on February 1, 2020.
In that election, Taposh received over 400,000 votes while BNP candidate Ishraque Hossain secured 236,000.
On March 3, 2020, Ishraque filed a case in which he alleged electoral irregularities and corruption and sought to annul the results.
All city corporation mayors were removed following the fall of the Awami League government amid last year's July-August mass uprising.
Since then additional secretary Shahjahan Mia has been serving as the administrator of DSCC.
On March 27 this year, Dhaka's first Joint District Judge and also Election Tribunal Judge Md Nurul Islam overturned the 2020 DSCC's election result, declaring Ishraque as the winner and ordered the EC to issue the gazette notification.
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