The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has directed the Election Commission (EC) to reinstate the registration of Jamaat-e-Islami as a political party. The court also stated that the EC will determine the party’s electoral symbol—traditionally the ‘scales’—at its discretion.
The verdict was announced on Sunday, June 1, by a four-member appellate bench led by Chief Justice Dr. Syed Refaat Ahmed. The bench overturned a previous High Court ruling that had declared Jamaat’s registration invalid.
The Appellate Division instructed that Jamaat’s pending application for registration, along with any related matters, be resolved by the Election Commission under its constitutional authority.
Jamaat-e-Islami was represented in court by a legal team including Barrister Ehsan Abdullah Siddique, Barrister Imran Abdullah Siddique, Advocate Mohammad Shishir Monir, Barrister Najib Momen, and Barrister Mir Ahmed Bin Quasem.
The legal dispute dates back to 2009, when 25 individuals, including Syed Rezaul Haque Chandpuri, filed a petition challenging the legality of Jamaat’s registration as a political party.
On August 1, 2013, a High Court bench comprising Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Kazi Reza-Ul Hoque declared the party’s registration illegal and ordered its cancellation. Subsequently, in October 2018, the then-Election Commission officially revoked Jamaat-e-Islami’s registration.
Jamaat had been using the ‘scales’ as its electoral symbol since 1986 and was provisionally registered as a political party on November 4, 2008. However, following the 2013 High Court verdict, Jamaat was barred from participating in the 10th national parliamentary elections.
At the time, the court declared that the Election Commission had acted beyond its legal jurisdiction in registering Jamaat, but it also allowed the party to appeal the decision directly to the Appellate Division. Today’s ruling marks a major legal reversal and potentially paves the way for Jamaat-e-Islami’s return to electoral politics.
