Can we sue to implement electoral manifesto?
Advocate Bellal Hossain:
The question is truly thought provoking. But the answer requires explanations. The aesthetics of democracy is that the political parties are honour bound to come back to voters at least once after every tenure. They promise many lucrative incentive packages for the citizens. The bunch of commitments becomes talk of the time at the eve of election. There is a general perception that politicians promise to break the pledge! Despite, why people prefer to get deceived over and over again?
There are crystal clear bipolar stance and some ambivalence between our existing two premier political parties in regard to domestic issues and foreign policy.
Both of the parties experienced landslide victory and utilised power several times. So it can be emphasised that they had the chance to keep the promises earlier. Nevertheless, they engage people in the hope of making further radical economic reforms in short future. Upholding human rights, creating employment opportunity, ensuring equal development in city and pastoral areas are their prioritised aspirations rhetorically. We have immense experience of non compliance of vows by the politicians. In spite of those evasion, we are indulged in wide variety of offers and commitments. Now question arises whether can we make them bound to implement their pledges?
Is there any legal remedy?
The answer is disappointedly no! The reasonings are extracted here.
We inherit legal system and laws of UK and India. The legal basis of getting inspired to get remedy is a principle of law which is “Doctrine of legitimate expectation.” But court of UK in many cases vitiated this doctrine in the cases of political tall talk.
In 2015, a bench of Chief Justice of India Mr. HL Datta and Justice Amitava Roy refused to provide remedy in a public interest litigation case filed by Advocate Mithilesh Kumar Pandey stating that, ” the Court cannot be cure for every problem of politics rather it should be adjudicated in the people’s Court.”
Actually the manifestos are treated as fundamental principles of state policy. These are aspirations to reach in future having priority basis.
As article 8 (2) of our Constitution refers, “The principles set out in this Part shall be fundamental to the governance of Bangladesh, shall be applied by the State in the making of laws, shall be a guide to the interpretation of the Constitution and of the other laws of Bangladesh, and shall form the basis of the work of the State and of its citizens, but shall not be judicially enforceable.”
So the effective remedy to outcast the liars who swell the electors by fake promises is not to vote them. So public awareness and rights alacrity can be an influential tool to confront the political miscreants.
The writer is a Senior Law Officer of Agrani Bank Limited, Barishal Circle. E-mail: bellal.sincere@gmail.com
