BNP Panel wins Supreme Court Bar election in landslide

The BNP-supported Nationalist Lawyers' Panel, known as the Blue Panel, achieved a sweeping victory in the 2026-27 Supreme Court Bar Association election, dominating key posts including president and secretary. The election, held over two days on May 13 and 14, saw 4,048 lawyers cast votes out of 11,097 registered.

The Blue Panel secured 13 major positions in the apex body for lawyers, while the Jamaat-e-Islami-backed Lawyers’ Unity Panel (Green Panel) managed only one executive committee member seat. Notably, for the first time, no Awami League-backed panel participated following a ban on direct party politics in professional associations passed in an April 26 special general meeting.

Barrister A M Mahbub Uddin Khokon, also a BNP joint secretary general and MP for Noakhali-1, was re-elected president with 2,984 votes, defeating Green Panel rival Abdul Baten who received 778 votes. Mohammad Ali of the Blue Panel won the secretary position with 2,582 votes.

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The Blue Panel also clinched both vice-presidencies, treasurer, and both assistant secretary posts, with six out of seven executive member seats also going to them. The lone seat outside the Blue Panel went to Md. Azim Uddin Patwari from the Green Panel.

A total of 40 candidates contested the 14 posts, with BNP and Jamaat-backed panels fielding full teams, while the National Citizen Party-backed Red-Green Panel contested selectively. Several independent candidates also ran.

Pro-Awami League lawyers condemned the election arrangement as "undemocratic" and "illegal," yet the BNP-backed lawyers' decisive win solidifies their control within the Supreme Court legal community. The election marks a significant shift in the association's political landscape due to the absence of ruling party-backed participants.