Dhaka Correspondent:

The High Court has declared the Election Commission's (EC) decision and gazette to reduce one of the four parliamentary constituencies in Bagerhat district to three illegal. At the same time, the court has ordered that the four seats in the district be maintained.

Justice Shashank Shekhar Sarkar and Justice KM Zahid Sarwar announced the verdict after the final hearing of the High Court bench rule of Kajal on Monday (November 10, 2025). Barrister Sheikh Mohammad Zakir Hossain heard the case in court on behalf of the writ. Advocate Biplob Kumar Poddar assisted him. Assistant Attorney General Md. Ikramul Kabir was present for the state.

Earlier, on September 16, a bench of Justice Md. Mujibur Rahman Mia and Justice Biswajit Debnath issued a rule asking why the four seats in Bagerhat should not be ordered to be maintained. At the same time, the Election Commission and the concerned parties were asked to respond within 10 days on why the gazette published by the EC should not be declared illegal.

The writ petition had the Bangladesh government, the Chief Election Commissioner, the Election Commission Secretary and the Attorney General as respondents.
The writ was filed by the Bagerhat Press Club, the District Lawyers Association, the District BNP, the District Jamaat-e-Islami, the District Islami Andolan Bangladesh and the District Truck Owners Association—who had been collectively agitating for the restoration of the four constituencies in the district.

On July 30, ahead of the 13th National Parliament elections, the Election Commission initially proposed reducing the four constituencies in Bagerhat to three. In protest of the proposal, various political and social organizations formed an "All-Party Joint Committee" and held various programs including hartals, human chains and blockades.
Ignoring their demands, the EC published the final gazette on September 4, dividing the four constituencies in the district into three.

According to the gazette, the new seat allocation for Bagerhat was— Bagerhat-1: Sadar, Chitalmari and Mollahat, Bagerhat-2: Fakirhat, Rampal and Mongla, Bagerhat-3: Kachua, Morelganj and Sharankhola. However, according to the court's order, four seats in Bagerhat district, which have existed since 1973, are now being retained— Bagerhat-1: Chitalmari, Mollahat and Fakirhat, Bagerhat-2: Bagerhat Sadar and Kachua, Bagerhat-3: Rampal and Mongla, Bagerhat-4: Morelganj and Sharankhola.

Local political analysts believe that this verdict will create a new equation in the calculation of candidates and votes in the upcoming 13th National Parliament elections.