SCBA Election Voting Begins

Voting in the two-day election for the 2026–27 Executive Committee of the Supreme Court Bar Association commenced on Wednesday, with polling on the first day beginning at 10 a.m. at the association premises.

According to the election schedule, voting will continue for two consecutive days—Wednesday and Thursday—from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with a one-hour break during the day.

The Election Sub-Committee convenor, senior lawyer Miftah Uddin Chowdhury, told Prothom Alo that polling started at 10 a.m. and was proceeding in a peaceful environment.

From early morning, the association premises witnessed a significant presence of voting lawyers and supporters. Long queues were observed as members arrived to cast their votes. Supporters wearing caps in blue, green, and red-green colours were seen standing in line, attracting the attention of incoming voters. They were also seen distributing cards containing panel names and ballot numbers to voters.

The election was announced earlier on 2 April through an official notice. The Executive Committee is formed for a one-year term and consists of 14 posts: one president, two vice-presidents, one secretary, one treasurer, two assistant secretaries, and seven members. A total of 40 candidates are contesting the 14 posts in this year’s election.

Structure of the Executive Committee

Although the election is formally described as non-partisan, it has historically been conducted along panel lines aligned with political affiliations among lawyers. In previous years, the main contest was typically between the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-aligned blue panel and the Awami League-aligned white panel.

However, a change occurred this year following a special general meeting (EGM) of members held on 26 April. According to three lawyers present at the meeting, a decision was taken not to allow participation of Awami League-aligned lawyers in the election, in view of a ban on party political activities.

As a result, for the first time in the association’s history, Awami League-aligned lawyers (white panel) are not participating in the election.

Instead, three main panels are contesting. These include the BNP-supported Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Forum (blue panel), the Jamaat-e-Islami-aligned Lawyers’ Unity Panel (green panel), and the National Citizens Party (NCP)-supported National Lawyers’ Alliance (red-green panel). In addition, several independent candidates are also contesting various posts.

According to administrative officer Md. Robiul Hasan, the total number of registered voters in this year’s election stands at 11,097. He also confirmed that 40 candidates are competing for the 14 available positions.