Department of Development Studies University of Dhaka

Assignment On:

Caretaker Government and Fair Election: Is Caretaker Government is the Precondition for the Fair Election and Democracy in Bangladesh?
Course: Contemporary Development Issues in Bangladesh (DS-404)

Submitted To:
Dr. Md. Reazul Haque Associate Professor Dept. of Development Studies University of Dhaka

Submitted By:
A.M.Rezwanul Hoque Hons 7th semester, Class Roll 14 Exam Roll 5004 Session: 2008-2009 Dept. of Development studies University of Dhaka

Submission Date: 24th May, 2012

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Contents
Acknowledgement Abstract 4 5

List of Figures Chapter One: Taking Caretaker Government into Mind 1.1. Introduction 1.2. Justification of the Research 1.3. Objectives of the Research 1.4. Research Question (s) 1.5. Issues of Ethics 1.6. Field work and Research Method 1.7. Limitations 1.8. Outline of the Research Paper

6 7 7 7 8 8 8 10 12 12

Chapter Two: Creating Foundation: Literature Review on caretaker government Chapter Three: Defining Caretaker Government and its Activities in the Context of Bangladesh 3.1. Definition of Caretaker Government 3.2. The Caretaker Government in Bangladesh 3.3. Background of The Caretaker Government in Bangladesh 3.4. Caretaker Government in Last Period (2006-2008) :A blessing or Curse Chapter Four: Obtaining the Peoples View : The Concluding Remarks Chapter Five : Findings and Recommendations 5.1. Conclusion

14 17 16 18 18 23 27 36 37

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Appendix Reference

38 40

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Acknowledgement

I am A.M.Rezwanul Hoque, student of Dhaka University at the Department of Development Studies, 4th year, 7th semester, and Class Roll-03, at first wish to express my thankfulness to my honorable course teacher Md. Reazul Haque, Associate Professor, Department of Development Studies, University of Dhaka for his proper guidance and encouragement to prepare this paper.

Then I want thank Shamima Akter Jahan, Secratery Female Studenrs Affair of Bangladesh Student League, Dhaka University as she spent her valuable time in collecting female students view. Then my thanks goes Md. Shakhiul Islam Shovon, as he was always beside my side in collecting the data.

And lastly I want thank allah that I am able to finish the research.

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Abstract
Bangladesh became independent from Pakistan in 1971, following a bloody war. One of the reasons for the creation of Bangladesh was the aspiration of the people to establish a democratic society. Conversely, it may be said that Bangladesh became an independent country as a protest against military rule. Ironically, between 1975 and 1991, the country was either under direct or indirect military rule. Since independence, two presidents have been killed in military coups, martial law has been imposed three times and thrice a state of emergency has been declared.

Like many developing countries, in Bangladesh the holding of free, fair and credible elections remains a big legal and political challenge despite the existence of all formal institutions including an apparent independent Election Commission. Those in power have always manipulated the rules and institutions concerned with the election process. Consequently, the innovative idea of holding the election under a non-party caretaker government was conceived as a solution. It was perceived that the non-party neutral caretaker government would have no motivation to manipulate the electoral process as the members of this government are barred from contesting the election.

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List of Figures

Figure 1: what importance does Caretaker Government have in order to have a fair election in Bangladesh 21

Figure 2 : Caretaker Government is how much impartial than political government in order to provide fair election 22

Figure 3 : For the stability of political situation what role Caretaker Government can play 23

Figure 4 : Does the caretaker government able make any impact on the political practice of Bangladesh Figure 5 : Caretaker Government comes in power for three month to give a fair election, is it enough time to provide a fair election 25 24

Figure 6 : Is the selection of chief advisor of Caretaker Government is impartial? 26

Figure 7 : Is the number of advisor of Caretaker Government is enough to do the entire task 27

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Chapter 1: Taking Caretaker Government into Mind 1.1 Introduction

In 2011 Bangladesh has observed its 40 years of independence but till now the people are not able to experience the real democracy. From independence, it had been said that this country will run by the law of democracy, never the actual democracy is practiced here. But it is clearly defined in Constitution that the country will run in a democratic way and to ensure constitutions sovereignty the constitution is created as rigid one which is hard to change. Recently 15th constitutional amendment was taken place which is about to abolish the Caretaker government. The amendment took two major political parties in two different poles. The government party is against the caretaker system where the opposition said that they will not take part in the election if the care taker system is not retained. On the issue of caretaker government the politics of Bangladesh is in a hanging situation.

1.2 Justification
The 15th amendment was passed in 30th in June 2011, which was against the caretaker government. Historically in Bangladesh the constitutional change has been happened for the preservation of the interest of government party and most of the case the power of constitutional change abused to strengthen the current power or to neutralize the power

of opposition in order to win the next election. After this change, the government party is quite happy that they are able to strengthening the root of democracy as by removing caretaker government from constitution, which brings to an end of the probability of army to get in the power. And to them this change is essential for the sovereignty of constitution as the caretaker government is not constitutional. Again the opposition parties are think that the constitutional change is a way to make cheat in the election by the government as political history is not so trustable in Bangladesh, that it is possible to have a fair election under elected government.
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Past four elections were run under the neutral caretaker government and the people are able to see various incidences which were taken place under the caretaker regime from 2006 to 2008. In addition, these incidences raise some question about the validity and the necessity of caretaker government. Actually in this paper I will try to answer those questions and will try to make a bridge between caretaker government and fair election.

1.3 Objective of the Research Paper

The objective of this research is to find out what importance does the caretaker government have for a fair election in Bangladesh? Is there any possible scope and better solution on the issue of caretaker government?

1.4 Research Question

1.4.1 Main Question How important it is to transfer power and responsibility to a non-democratic Caretaker government for a fair election, in a democratic country like Bangladesh? And what is the necessity of caretaker government for the fair election in Bangladesh? 1.4.2 Sub Questions What people think about the caretaker government?

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1.5 Issues of Ethics:

The ethical standard for conducting such research had been strictly adhered to. At the very beginning of my interview process, we informed my respondents that this research is being conducted strictly for research purposes, no harm or benefits could be done to the respondents through the research and no monetary benefits would be provided during the field work. We ensured respondents of maintaining confidentiality by not disclosing their name and address at the time of report writing; pseudonym had been used in this paper. Respondents had freedom to withdraw from the interview at anytime; he/she had the right not to answer any questions if unwilling and participation had been voluntary. The set time for the meeting had been maintained rigorously. The transcripts had been provided to the respondent if s/he wished to have a look at it. No personal questions and/or any questions deemed irrelevant for the research had not been asked.

1.6 Field Works and Research Methods

1.6.1. Research Method

This research being focused on citizens of Bangladesh, had seek to what people think about caretaker government and how they experience and react differently to this issue. It had also taken into account that the personality of the researcher affects the research methodology and shapes the data collection and interpretation process. Hence, the research has been conducted by using Qualitative Research tool as by dint of qualitative research only the research can achieve its desired view of people in the issue of caretaker government for a fair election.

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1.6.2. Sources of Data

Both primary and secondary data have been used in this research. While primary data have guided me to conclude a conclusion that to some extent represents the peoples view, and the secondary data have been a guideline for the research. The source of secondary data was various scholarly journals and articles, reports prepared by different development organizations working in the relevant field, Newspaper reports and books. 1.6.3. Research Locations

The research location was the Various Public and Private Universities of Dhaka area. As my research was self-funded, financial constraint has not allowed me to conduct my field work beyond Dhaka city. The identified location, therefore, has been suitable for me. 1.6.4. Sampling Issues

Sampling is necessary in order to avoid bias and ensure representation of different stakeholders (Mayoux, 2002: 2). In creating sample one option is to take a purposive sample, looking at a small number of locations in detail in order to gain an impression of the situation overall (Miles and Hubermann, 1994: 26). A suggested starting point for developing a qualitative sample is to begin with a stratified purposeful sample, which can be used to illustrate the different subgroups of the study area (INTRAC, 2004: 37).

The whole nation is related my study but it is impossible to cover all peoples view. So I select the student part form all people for my study. Again it is impossible to cover the whole student part. For the constrain of money and time I can only took the views of 40 students, whose are currently studying in various public and private universities. The reason behind taking only the ideas of university is because all of them are adult, educated and conscious about the country and politics; most importantly they are the future citizens of this country
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1.6.5. Basic Techniques: Interview through Semi-structured Questionnaire

Lindlof and Taylor highlights the importance of this Semi- Structured interview method, they suggested

It is generally beneficial for interviewers to have an interview guide prepared, which is an informal "grouping of topics and questions that the interviewer can ask in different ways for different participants"1

In the research I used both open and closed questionnaires. I asked total seven questions to the fourty students of various universities By using open questioner I asked student about the question what initiative can make caretaker government more effective and stronger and how? Here I used open questioner as The question may have various answers. The respondents are free to express their own idea. The answer of the question is a critical one than others.

And rest of the questions are being asked according to the fixed questionnaire as It takes less time. It confined the answer in fixed area.

Lindlof and Taylor, 2002 T.R. Lindlof and B.C. Taylor, Qualitative Communication Research Methods (second ed), Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA (2002), p. 195

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1.6.6. Processing of Data The data processing has been carried out following the field work and Interviews Qualitative data transcription was done manually. Firstly the transcription of the interviews was conducted in Bengali. Afterwards, the required information for the report writing was translated into English.

1.7. Limitations
My research topic is caretaker government that is related to the country, people and democracy. The area is too big. People of various occupations and sectors like politicians, students, jobholders, executives, lawyers have various ideas about the topic. However, the research time is too short to cover the entire sector that is why I select only the students of various universities of Dhaka city for my research respondents. To me the university students are the representative of future generation and their ideology and way of thinking is much higher than other people. So their expressed view about the caretaker government, to some extent represents the entire peoples view about caretaker government.

1.8. Outline of the Research Paper

The research paper is divided into five chapters. The first chapter has enlighten (or established) why the I selected the research topic. This also has given the rationale, objectives and the research question of the study. The methodology has been portrayed here with other necessary information of the study.

The second chapter has shown the works of the prior academicians and scholar on the topic of caretaker government and based on the prior works, the operational definition and the probable theoretical framework have also been pictured here.

The third chapter has analyzed the concept caretaker government and its situation in our country.
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The fourth chapter is based on the normal peoples views on the topic caretaker government. The data analysis has captured the approximate true picture. This chapter has pictured the position and situation of the stakeholders of the issue of caretaker governments necessity for the fair election.

The last chapter has given the concluding remarks of the study by providing the findings and the recommendation of the research.

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Chapter Two: Creating the Foundation Literature Review on the Issue Caretaker Government
Academicians are divided on the issue of caretaker government. The issue of caretaker government for fair election comes in focus after the recent change of constitution. Some of them think caretaker government is better for our democracy and election where some of them are against it because of the experience of last caretaker governments activities. One of the main reason to remove the caretaker government system is that someone the Military was stepped in and suspended the elections. Many of people said that the intervention of military was too much in the ruling process. The matter was not that straight, though the military supported constitutionally mandated government, like any military of the world would do. What is the harm in it or what conspiracy one can see in such support of military to the caretaker government? Actually this change was to influence the election and to make cheat in election process 2 (Hoque: 2009)

Caretaker government can work independently, but how they use this power?One of the resigned advisers of caretaker government Chowdhury), is quoted at last regime, General Hasan Mashud

From the very start it was clear that the president was a party [BNP] man. He was not detached from his party in the least [and had] totally failed in his job as a neutral administrator:

So those who is advocating caretaker for fair election and impartiality this is clear evidence to them. At least by this recent amendment the root of democracy is being strengthened. (Shakhawat Liton, Daily Star 2006)3

2 3

Hoque, Masudul, A.K.M. 2009, Emergency Power and Caretaker Government http://thedailystar.net/2006/12/12/d6121201011.htm

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The Hong Kong based Asian Legal Resources Centre estimates that between 11 January 2007 and 11 January 2008 over 250,000 have been arbitrarily arrested and many such detainees have been tortured during this time. Again there were many reported deaths in custody and often with marks of severe torture. The number of people arrested just within a span of a month (between 28 May 2008 and 30 June 2008) is reported to be 50,215. Out of these, arrest warrants were issued only against 34,249 and others were arrested without any warrant. (Daily Ittefaq, June 30 2008) 4 This statistics shows how the human justice violated at that time. Asif Nazrul, Professor, in Law Department in University of Dhaka stated the amendment as mixed hotchpotch as by this the ruling party actually violated of over eyed their past activities for the caretaker government. He also stated that under the political government we are able to various notorious activities of ruling party in local election, (Upazilla election of Shailokupa) how it is possible for election commission to give a fair election under the political government. 5 Again in answering the question of Asif Nazrul, Seikh Hafizur Rahamn, Associate Professor, Law Department in University of Dhaka stated that it was election manifesto of present ruling party that if they elected they will go back to the 1972s constitution. As caretaker government is against the 1972s constitution, the amendment of abolishing the government taken places. He also said Awami league comes in power with more than sixty percent of total votes, so most people of the country are in support of abolishing the caretaker system. He rather influence in strengthening the election commission.6 Till now its a debate, that which one is better for the country? Having caretaker government or not? Many of the scholars are supported the caretaker government where many of them are not. But the impotent thing is with the abolishment of caretaker government they also suggested to make the election commission stronger.
4

<http://www.ittefaq.com/content/2008/06/30/news0463.htm> at 27 November, 2008. Daily Prothom Alo, at 16 July, 2011 Daily Prothom Alo, at 16 July, 2011

5 6

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Chapter Three: Defining the Caretaker Government & Its Activities in the Context of Bangladesh

3.1

Definition of Caretaker Government

The Caretaker Government is a special form of government system in which the country is ruled by a selected government for an interim period during transition from one government to another, after the completion tenure of the former. As the outgoing government hands over their power, the caretaker government comes into place.7 Caretaker governments may also be put in place when a government in

a parliamentary system is defeated in motion of no confidence or in the case when the house to which the government is responsible is dissolved, to rule the country for an interim period until an election is held and a new government is formed. This type of caretaker government is adopted in Bangladesh where an advisor council led by the former chief judge rules the country for three months before an elected government takes over. In systems where coalition governments are frequent a caretaker government may be installed temporarily while negotiations to form a new coalition take place. This usually occurs either immediately after an election in which there is no clear victor or if one coalition government collapses and a new one must be negotiated.8 (Authors own translation) Caretaker governments are expected to handle daily issues and prepare budgets for discussion, but are not expected to produce a government platform or introduce controversial bills. Caretaker governments are of three kinds3.1.1 Presumed Caretaker Government There are no basic rules or mandatory for this type of government. In special situation this government comes in to the caretaker role. This type care taker government mainly comes
7 8

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caretaker_government
Banglapedia: Caretaker Government

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in power with the expiry of legislative part of the present government or the failure of present government in the confidence votes in the parliament. This government is validating for the next election and its main task is to perform the duty of election. However, this type of government is acknowledged in everywhere in the world. In Britain, France, and in many other countries the election is taken place in regime of the prior prime minister. The prime minister need not to be resigned from his post. For that reason this type is of government cannot be said as real caretaker government.

3.1.2 Caretaker Government in Special Sense To handle any disaster or any crucial situation like war, famine, the special kinds of interim government that comes in power is called caretaker government in special case. In 1945 prior the Second World War with the leadership Winston Churchill and other important persons of America shaped a interim government for the next upcoming election. Sir Ivor Jennings later termed this government as Caretaker Government in Special Sense.

3.1.3 Caretaker Government in True Sense Caretaker Government in True Sense means special kinds of government which is apolitical, impartial and neutral in nature. The key thing is every member of this government is personally prevented from voting, supporting and taking part in the election. In Bangladesh this type government was introduced by the 13th amendment of constitution.

3.2

The Caretaker Government of Bangladesh

The Caretaker Government of Bangladesh is a form of government system in which the country is ruled by a selected government for an interim period during transition from one government to another, after the completion tenure of the former. As the outgoing government hands over their power, the caretaker government comes into place. Members
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of the caretaker government do not belong to any political party; nor are they allowed to contest the elections. The main objective of the caretaker government is to create an environment in which an election can be held in a free and fair manner without any political influence of the outgoing government. It is not empowered to take any policy decisions unless it is necessary.

The head of the Caretaker government is called the Chief Adviser and is selected by the President, and the Chief Adviser selects the other advisers. The administration is generally distributed between the advisers. The Chief Adviser and the other advisers are committed for their activities to the President. A Caretaker government is headed by a Chief Adviser who enjoys the same power as the regular prime minister of the country except defense matters. The Advisors function as Ministers.

3.2.1 The Issue of Caretaker Government in Constitution The amendment provided that after the resignation of the government, before a scheduled general election, the president shall invite the immediate past chief justice of the country to become the chief adviser (CA). 9 If this was not possible, the Constitution suggests the Chief Justices of Bangladesh retired next before the last retired Chief Justice, or the retired Judges of the Appellate Division who retired last or the retired Judges of the Appellate Division retired next before the last such retired Judge could be appointed as head of the Caretaker Government.10 If these options are not available or not feasible, the President shall, after consultation, as far as practicable, with the major political parties, appoint the Chief Adviser from among citizens of Bangladesh.11

Article 58C (1) says that, the Non-Party Care-taker Government shall consist of the Chief Adviser at its head and not more than ten other Advisers. The advisers are to be appointed

10 11

Bangladesh Constitution, art 58C(3) Bangladesh Constitution, art 58C(4) Bangladesh Constitution, art 58C(5)

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by the president on the advice of the chief adviser.12 The advisers should not be member of any political party and should be qualified for election.13 The CA would exercise the executive power of the republic during the tenure of the caretaker government. The tenure of the CA commences from the moment of taking the oath of office and ends when a new prime minister is sworn in after the general elections.14

3.2.2 Functions of Non-Party Care-taker Government

The Non-Party Caretaker Government shall carry on the routine functions of such government with the aid and assistance of persons in the services of the Republic and shall not make any policy decision.15The first and foremost responsibility of this government is to hold a free, fair and credible election with the help of Election commission. 16 The amendment, in clear terms, made it mandatory to hold the general election within 90 days.17

3.3 Background of the Caretaker Government in Bangladesh

The Constitution (Thirteenth Amendment) Act 1996 was passed, requiring all future general elections in Bangladesh to be held in accordance with this amendment. 18 Under this arrangement, the government, at the end of its tenure, rather than going into a caretaker mode should hand over power to a non-party caretaker government.

A caretaker government was first introduced in 1990 when three party alliances jointly made a demand for it. After the forced resignation of General Ershad, the three alliances
12

Bangladesh Constitution, art 58C(8) Bangladesh Constitution, art 58C(7) 14 Ibid. 15 Bangladesh Constitution, art 58D(1)
13 16
17

Bangladesh Constitution, art 58D(2) Bangladesh Constitution, art123(3) This clause was substituted for the former clause (3) by the Constitution (Thirteenth Amendment) Act 1996, (Act1 of 1996), s 6
18

For a critical analysis of various provisions of the Thirteenth Amendment, see M Rafiqul Islam, Free and Fair General Elections in Bangladesh under the Thirteenth Amendment: A Political-Legal Post-Mortem (July-December 1996) 26 Politics, Administration and Change 18.

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nominated Chief Justice Shahabuddin Ahmed as the Chief Advisor. Since 1996, the Caretaker government has held the elections of 1996, 2001 and 2008. Although the first caretaker government was intended to help the transition from authoritarianism to democracy, the Sixth Parliament dominated by Bangladesh Nationalist Party

constitutionalised this system in 1996. The 1st caretaker government consisted of 17 advisers. They appointed Justice Abdur Rouf as CEC, Justice sayed Mesbah Uddin Hossain and Nayeem Uddin Ahmed as EC. A fine and acceptable voter list is the prior condition of a fair election. This government took the initiatives to renew the voter list.

The second Caretaker government was headed by the Justice Habibur Rahman. After taking the responsibility, this government started working on reconstitution of election commission. They appointed the renowned bureaucrat Md. Abu Hena as CEC, district judge Mostaque Ahmed Chowdhury and retired secretary Abdur Rahman as EC. They also took initiatives for strengthening the law and order situation. They gave highest importance on the administrative impartiality. The election commission limited the expenses in election of the candidates and imposed them to submit their expenses sources. The commission arranged various workshops for election officer through Election Training Institute so that they could do their duties properly. In this election, (1996) Bangladesh Awami League captured 147 parliamentary seats and they led with the coalition of Jamat-e-Islami. Bangladesh Nationalist Party joined the parliament as opposition with 116 seats.

The government elected on 12thJune, 1996 has completed the tenure on 13July 2001. President dissolved the parliament on 14July 2001. The last retired chief Justice Md. Latifur Rahman was appointed as Chief Adviser according to the Constitution act 58(C). On 16 July, the president appointed ten advisers on the advice of chief adviser. This caretaker government started the registration system for the political party. Under this government, the eighth national parliament election has taken place. The four-party coalition headed by BNP gained the two-third majority in the election. The election was appreciated both nationally and internationally.

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The ninth parliamentary election, though fixed for January 22, 2007, was troubled from the beginning. Even before the election dates were announced, the opposition parties were complaining of foul play in the election process. The controversy centered on the appointment of Chief Advisor of the Caretaker Government. As per Constitution, Justice KM Hasan, the last retired Chief Justice of the Supreme Court was to be the Chief Advisor of the caretaker government. But, opposition parties objected to Hasans candidature primarily due to his proximity with Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)the government had increased the retirement age of Chief Justice from 65 to 67 by amending the Constitution in 2004 to allow Hasan to head the caretaker regime. Hasan quietly withdrew himself and became incommunicado. The opposition parties suggested few other names but with BNP refusing to accept any of the names, it was left to the Army to move in and occupy the political space. When the Khaleda Zia government completed its term in the midst of chaos and violence, President, Iajuddin Ahmed quickly stepped into the void and declared himself as the Chief Advisor overlooking all other options available in the Constitution. As per the Constitution, the President can become the Chief Adviser of a Non-Partisan Caretaker Government in addition to carrying out his own functions only when he has tried all other alternatives available besides the situation has to be exceptional.

The trouble began soon after Iajuddin-led Caretaker Government took charge; Awami League went on a protest mode following the governments refusal to rectify some of the partisan measures of the previous BNP government. The Opposition also accused the President of pursuing policies of the BNP government, instead of acting neutrally. The institution further deteriorated on the issue of the removal of Chief Election Commissioner who was accused of favoring BNP. The Opposition was miffed when the election dates were announced and they intensified their protests, demanding immediate postponement of the elections. On January 7, the 14- party Opposition alliance led by Awami League (AL) decided to boycott the elections. This isolated BNP and undermined the legitimacy of the ninth parliamentary election. Large-scale violence erupted across the country, forcing President Iajuddin to impose emergency on January 11 and resign from the post of Chief

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Advisor of the Caretaker government. Thus, a new chapter was added to Bangladeshs tumultuous history on 1/11, as the event is popularly referred to.

On January 12, 2007, Dr.Fakruddin Ahmed, renowned economist and former Bangladesh Bank Governor, was appointed as the Chief Advisor of the military-backed caretaker government. Although people were not overjoyed by the move, it brought a sense of relief from the continuing violence.

3.3 Caretaker Government in last Period (2006-2008): A blessing or Cruse

Because of various activities of the past caretaker government the idea of this government has been criticized. It is true that this government comes into power and able to stabilize the violent situation of politics but it has been said that the past regime of caretaker government was military-backed where there is a little scope of practice of democracy. Because of various activities of last caretaker government, people and political parties have to think about the abolishment of this government. 3.3.1 Constitutional Validity of the Military-backed Government Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmeds government was the countrys third caretaker government since October 2006.19 This government enjoyed the mandate of the Bangladesh Army. The main objective of the government as declared by Fakhruddin Ahmed (on January 11, 2008) was to hold free, fair and credible election. The Constitutional validity of the government, however, was questionable. As per Bangladeshs Constitution, a Caretaker Government should have been constituted within 15 days of the dissolution of the Jatiya Sangsad and should be in a position to hand over powers to a duly constituted popular government within 90 days after the dissolution of the previous parliament.2. Hence, already, this government has completed the stipulated time limit that qualifies itself to be a caretaker government. However, observers of Bangladeshs politics suggest that since the main objective of this government is to hold election, therefore, it can be called a caretaker
19

As first caretaker government was not constitutionalised

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government. This is one of the distinctive features of this government. Unlike previous such caretaker regimes, the present governments administrative and development initiatives also show a determination to prevent the country from slipping another round of chaos and violence and to hold a credible and fair election.

3.3.2 Achievements of Government:

The law and order situation certainly improved. There were no major incidents of hartal (protests), strikes and political violence. Establishment of Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) and similar actions against corruption have drawn public support. The prosecution of some of the high and mighty in corruption cases has encouraged public support for the actions of the government.

The reconstitution of a non-partisan Election Commission has added to the governments credibility and image. The government has also worked on separating Election Commission Secretariat from the Prime Ministers Office.

There has been a major change in the election system as the caretaker government has introduced Voter ID cards (with photograph) for the first time. The Bangladesh Army including members of other military forces were deployed throughout the nation including the remotest areas. They were equipped with laptops, and small digital cameras in an effort that would result in the most orderly voter's list in Bangladesh's history

Another development that has gone down well with the people was the government decision to come down heavily on the extremist groups and leaders. The militant leader of Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), Bangla Bhai and five of his associates were executed in March end 2007. The government also took measures to streamline the power sector, improving the power generation and distribution much to the relief of the ordinary people.
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3.3.3 The Backside of Caretaker Government: Despite of such positive development, the government faced some criticisms, specially, dealing with political parties, daunting economic situation and the overwhelming influence of the armed forces.

3.3.3.1 Politics under the Caretaker Government:

Politics in Bangladesh remained tightly under the leash of the military -backed caretaker government. Political parties and the caretaker government remained at loggerheads on various issues. The government was accused of adopting a vindictive attitude towards them parties that, they argued, would be detrimental for the restoration of democracy in the country.

The government had banned all political activities, forcing the political parties to the sidelines. The government also attempted to neutralize the power of two major parties, AL and BNP, by declaring a policy that it called the Minus Two Formula, which meant sending AL chief, Sheikh Hasina and BNP chief Khaleda Zia on exile. This move however failed after Khaleda refused to leave the country. Though Hasina had left the country, she managed to force her way back .The government, however, did not give up its determination to neutralise the two parties and ordered the arrest of Hasina and Khaledad in June and September 2007 respectively on charges of corruption.

The government also came under criticism for pushing for reforms in the political parties. This raised heckles in the political circles which questioned the governments authority to call for such actions. Though Awami League remained united against any such move, there were differences within BNP over the issue. The government supported the rebel group and encouraged it to split.

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3.3.3.2 Role of Military in that Government: The government remained in the shadow of the Army though the caretaker government was at points to give the impression that it remained free of the Army, it was Army Chief Moeen Ahmed who was ultimately calling the shots, and Chief Advisor Fakhruddin remained a puppet of the Army. . The Army Chief had become the most visible face in the countrys newspaper and his photographs were regularly published. His comments on several non-military issues What should the nature of democracy in the country? How should economy be working? How and when the emergency to be lifted?- got equal or more importance than that of Chief Advisors. Many ex-Service officials mostly ex-Army officials were given important positions in the government. The military also involved itself in issues like sale of food items to the poor, organizing voters registration and coordination of relief after the devastation of cyclone in November, 2007.

In fact, Armys dominance in the government has raised concern about the prospect of democracy in the country. The government was heavily criticized for sending intelligence officials to the house of the professors who were arrested in August 2007.

Though the Army Chief had declared that he was not keen on grabbing power, it has been met widespread skepticism. People fear that the Army might just stay back in the saddle and delay the restoration of democracy.

3.3.3.3 Economic Situation Under the Government : The economy fared badly. Inflation crossed more than 11%. A declining trend was noticed almost in all sectors of the economy. Industrial investment, volume of agricultural product and exports were affected mostly. No fresh job opportunities were created and the prices skyrocketed. The foreign and native investment were goes nearly zero as most of the investor are not sure about what will happen in future. Foreign aid was also decreased as one of main preconditions of most of the donor agency, the practice of democracy was
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absent here. Moreover every work or investment was checked and analyzed by the intelligence agency, which also hampered the investment. The industry blamed the government for the down spiral; they said it was caused by the prevailing sense of uncertainty and the governments crackdown on corruption.

The government also came in for criticism for its failure to control the prices, which affected the common people the most.

3.3.3.4 External relations in the Regime of the Government: The caretaker government enjoyed support and recognition from major powers. In fact, envoys of the United States and Great Britain played influential role in 1/11. It received generous support and aids from the international community to deal with two floods and a cyclone in November 2007 that devastated the country. But later their support began to decrease and the governments of those countries were criticized for supporting the military backed government of Bangladesh. Other significant events that influenced the countrys external relations like - arrival of the US Marine to help Bangladesh to carry out relief and rescue operations after the Sidr Cyclone in November 2007. Bangladeshs Foreign Affair Advisor, Iftekhar Ahmeds visit to Russia, primarily to seek help in setting up a nuclear power plant, and irritants in the relations with Malaysia over the migrant labor issue.

Throughout the chapter, we have captured the definition, history and activities of caretaker government in Bangladesh. The last regime of caretaker government was mostly discussed because of activities of that government. In a summary it can be said that in the time between 2006-2008, under that caretaker government the country was ironically handled and many structural development was taken places, though there were little practice of democracy.

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Chapter Four: Obtaining the Peoples View- The Field Survey

4.1 Introduction:
In this chapter the views of general people were stated which was taken from them by a semi structured questioners20. They answered total eight questions and the basis of the answer of their questions there forms a conclusion.

First question, to them was what importance does Caretaker Government have in order to have a fair election in Bangladesh? Fig: what importance does Caretaker Government have in order to have a fair election in Bangladesh

Have Importance

Have No Importance

Dont Know

Where, we can see most of students are in favor of caretaker government, which is 87.5%. Only 12.5% of them think that there is no necessity of caretaker system. Therefore, majority of young generation think that caretaker government is must for a fair election in Bangladesh. To them, it is true that caretaker system is necessary for holding a free, fair
20

See Appendix

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election but EC is mainly responsible for this job. But in Bangladesh most of the time the outgoing party tries to enforce the EC. So most of the students are in favor of caretaker system.

The next question to them was Caretaker Government is how much impartial than political government in order to provide fair election? Fig: Caretaker Government is how much impartial than political government in order to provide fair election.

Totally Impartial

Politically Biased

Dont know

There were total 40 respondents. Among them 42.5%, students said that caretaker government is impartial, but 45% do not think in the same way. Their opinion is that the caretaker government can also be partial to a special political party. The last retired chief judge was selected as the chief advisor of the caretaker government. The main task of caretaker government is to provide fair, neutral and impartial election. It is the trend of political parties of this country is to win the election by influencing the election process. To respondents, it is true that caretaker government is more impartial than political one in providing fair election. But as the selection of chief judge was not free

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from politicization, thats why most of the respondents think that the caretaker government is not totally impartial.

The third question was For the stability of political situation what role Caretaker Government can play? Fig : For the stability of political situation what role Caretaker Government can play

Very Important Role

Important Role

Do not Play Any Role

In third question, we can see that 50% students think caretaker government plays a important role for the stability of political situation, where 30% thinks think that caretaker government has played very important role in the politics of Bangladesh. In this case, majority of them think that the role is important. Rest of them said caretaker government does not play any role about the stability of political situation. Most of the students think that caretaker government plays a important role for the stability of political situation. First caretaker government established for the transition from authoritarianism to democracy. In that situation there is no alternative of this type of
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government. Thats why 30% think caretaker government has a big role to play. Where 50% gives their opinion that caretaker government has a important role in the stability of politics. To them, for 1/11 incidence the caretaker government has been criticized, but it is also true that only this caretaker government was able to neutralize the situation. Again 12.5% think that caretaker government does not play any role for the stability of political situation. To them, if caretaker government played any role the various notorious incidences after 1/11 would not taken places.

The Fourth question was Does the caretaker government able make any impact on the political practice of Bangladesh?
Fig : Does the caretaker government able make any impact on the political practice of

Bangladesh

Improved the situation Pretty much

Able to improve situation but not much

Create disturbance in political practice

Only 22.5% students said that caretaker government system is able to improve the situation pretty much, however, 67.5% think that the situation has been improved during caretaker tenure but not much. The rest 10% ones said this system created disturbance for normal political practice

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If the election was not taken place under the caretaker government, the hostility among will increased and that will create massacre in political practice. To them, because of the lack of political belief among political parties, there is no alternative than caretaker government. Past four elections was taken place under the caretaker government which was mostly accepted by all which shows success of the government in improving political situation. But most of peoples view that the caretaker government only comes in power to make the election happen, what else will be happen to the political situation is not their concern.

The Fifth question was Caretaker Government comes in power for three month to give a fair election, is it enough time to provide a fair election?
Fig : Caretaker Government comes in power for three month to give a fair election, is it

enough time to provide a fair election

Time is enough

Time should be increased

Time should be decreased

53.75 % respondents said three month is enough to give a fair election, because to them more time in government will make them greedy for power and that may have a harmful effect on the politics. Here they took the example of last caretaker government, .whereas 30%students said time should be increased, because three month is a short period to give a
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fair election. Here the logic is for a fair election there are so many work to be done like renew the voter list, selection of officers, and arrange various training for the election officers. 16.25% said time should be decreased, may be the bitter experience of last caretaker government is the reason for this.

The sixth question to them was Is the selection of chief advisor of Caretaker Government is impartial? Fig : Is the selection of chief advisor of Caretaker Government is impartial

Yes

No

dont know

16.25% students of 80 said the selection is impartial. The majority, 72.50% students said it is partial. Who believes it is impartial as the act of the selection has been described by constitution, so here is no chance of political influence. However, in practice, we see chief justices are not neutral politically and in 2006, we have seen that by increasing the retiring age of chief justice it is possible to select a political chief adviser. For this reason majority thinks the selection is partial. But important thing is that though most of respondents thinks that the selection of the advisor of caretaker government are on impartial but they
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are in favor of caretaker government as to them in most of the cases the advisors have the sense of impartiality which is absent in political government.

The seventh question to them was Is the number of advisor of Caretaker Government is enough to do the entire task? Fig : Is the number of advisor of Caretaker Government is enough to do the entire task

Enough

Should be increased

65% students said number of adviser is enough to do the entire task. The rest 35% think it is not enough. May be the reason is caretaker government has to do the normal job of so many ministry and also to help the EC to hold a free and fair election, which is not so easy. Therefore, a portion of the respondents think that the number of adviser should be increased And the last question was an open question to them, where the initiatives to strengthening the caretaker government had been asked. In answering that question most of the respondents said that the power and tenure of caretaker government need to specified more clearly. Though it stated in constitution that the tenure of caretaker government is
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90days but the rules was broken in last regime of caretaker government. Again many of them asked the question about the measurement of impartiality, in 58(c) act of constitution it has been stated that the advisor of caretaker government should be impartial, what criteria will make them impartial should be defined clearly. And as the chief judge take the responsibility of chief advisor of caretaker government, so the selection process of chief judge need be free from politicization. All this initiatives may able to make the caretaker government stronger.

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Chapter Five: Conclusion & Recommendation 5.1 Findings & Recommendation

Again I am saying that by the 15th amendment of constitution the caretaker government was abolished which was constitutionalised by 13th amendment of constitution. The both establishment and abolishment is happened through the constitutional way, then which one is better? The caretaker government is appointed for a fair election though the country has an election commission. So my first recommendation will be related on election commission. From literature it has been seen that-21 Election commission has the responsibility perform all the activities of election. In constitutions 7th part it is clearly defined that all electoral responsibilities goes to the election commission not the caretaker government. Again by constitutional act 58(b), 58(c0, 58(d) the election commission is made autonomous though hardly the commission is able exercise its autonomy power because of fallacy of the constitunal rules. The election secretariat was connected to the prime minister office, for that it is impossible for them to work independently without the influence of prime minister. So like judiciary this secretariat needs to separate from legislative part. Again counting votes, forecasting result in every election area is done by the bureaucrats of that area, for example in district it is the responsibility for deputy commissioner to supervise the whole election process. But most of the bureaucrats are politically biased. So if they do any wrong in the election the election commission has no power to punish him/her immediately. But the caretaker government use armies to make the election situation peaceful, whose are bound to answer to their authority if any bad incidence happened. So before abolishing the caretaker government the policy makers need to look at this issue.

21

Bangle

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The structural situation of election commission is not strong enough to perform a huge duty like election. So in a word before abolishing caretaker government the election commission need to stronger both in structure and power to perform such a burden like election. Till that we need caretaker government. But there also need some rules of caretaker government which is needed to be changed. Firstly, actually in how many days caretaker government will have done all its activities is not clear enough. It is stated in constitution that in 90 days the government will have create the preferable environment for election but there is a eye wash in the rules as in last caretaker government regime the government said that there is no favorable political situation for election, so that they need to be in power for few more days. Secondly, as chief judge appointed as the chief advisor of caretaker government so the process of selecting chief judge should be apolitical.

5.2 Conclusion:
Historically it is true that the political history in Bangladesh is not so trustable that it is possible to have a fair election under elected government. Past four elections was happened under the caretaker government. There were some debates about the impartiality of result of the election but most of the people and other international agencies were accepted the result. It has been asked to the amicus curie22 of supreme court that what was their opinion about caretaker government in order to fair election, 90 % of them said that accounting the present situation in mind caretaker government have a role to play but in future the system need to be abolished as it is not goes to the motto of 1972s constitution.

22

See Appendix

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So to me at present the country has necessity of caretaker government for a fair election and the possible solution on the issue of caretaker government will bebecause of the past experience of caretaker government and as it is against the actual theme of constitution, the caretaker government should be banned but concerning the country and its current situation, for fair election this government should validate for next two elections, after that the system will abolish.

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Appendix:
Semi structured questionnaires: What initiative can made caretaker government more effective and stronger and how? Structured questionnaires : What importance does Caretaker Government have in order to have a fair election in Bangladesh? 1. Have importance 2. Have no importance 3. Dont know Caretaker Government is how much impartial than political government in order to provide fair election? 1. Totally impartial 2. Politically biased 3. Dont know For the stability of political situation what role Caretaker Government can play? 1. Very important role 2. Important role 3. Do not play any role

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 Does the caretaker government able make any impact on the political practice of Bangladesh? 1. Improved the situation pretty much 2. Able to improve situation but not much 3. Create disturbance in political practice

Caretaker Government comes in power for three month to give a fair election, is it enough time to provide a fair election? 1. Time is enough 2. Time should be increased 3. Dont know Is the selection of chief advisor of Caretaker Government is impartial? 1. Yes 2. No 3. Dont know Is

the

number

of

advisor

of

Caretaker

Government is enough to do all the task ? 1. Enough 2. Should be increased

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References:
1. Umar, Badaruddin (2010), The History of Caretaker Government in the Military Era 2. Nazrul, Asif 2008, Emergence of Caretaker Government 3. The Constitution of Bangladesh 4. Hoque, Masudul, A.K.M. 2009, Emergency Power and Caretaker Government 5. The Daily Prothom Alo Archive 6. The Daily Star Arcive 7. The Daily ittefaq Archive 8. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caretaker_government 9. Banglapedia : Caretaker Government

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