FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS IN BANGLADESH CONSTITUTION

Article-27 Equality before law.

All citizens are equal before law and are entitled to equal protection of law.

Article-28 Discrimination on grounds of religion, etc.

(1) The State shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race caste, sex or place of birth.

(2) Women shall have equal rights with men in all spheres of the State and of public life.

(3) No citizen shall, on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth be subjected to any disability, liability, restriction or condition with regard to access to any place of public entertainment or resort, or admission to any educational institution.

(4) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making special provision in favour of women or children or for the advancement of any backward section of citizens.

Article-29. Equality of opportunity in public employment.

(1) There shall be equality of opportunity for all citizens in respect of employment or office in the service of the Republic.

(2) No citizen shall, on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth, be ineligible for, or discriminated against in respect of, any employment or office in the service of the Republic.

(3) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from -

(a) Making special provision in favour of any backward section of citizens for the purpose of securing their adequate representation in the service of the Republic;

(b) Giving effect to any law which makes provision for reserving appointments relating to any religious or denominational institution to persons of that religion or denomination; reserving for members of one sex any class of employment or office on the ground that it is considered by its nature to be unsuited to members of the opposite sex.

Article-30. Prohibition of foreign titles, etc.

No citizen shall, without the prior approval of the President, accept any title, honor, award or decoration from any foreign state.

Article-31. Right to protection of law.

To enjoy the protection of the law, and to be treated in accordance with law, and only in accordance with law, is the inalienable right of every citizen, wherever he may be, and of every other person for the time being within Bangladesh, and in particular no action detrimental to the life, liberty, body, reputation or property of any person shall be taken except in accordance with law.

Article-32. Protection of right to life and personal liberty.

No person shall be deprived of life or personal liberty saves in accordance with law.

Article-33. Safeguards as to arrest and detention.

(1) No person who is arrested shall be detained in custody without being informed, as soon as may be of the grounds for such arrest, nor shall he be denied the right to consult and be defended by a legal practitioner of his choice.

(2) Every person who is arrested and detained in custody shall be produced before the nearest magistrate within a period of twenty four hours of such arrest, excluding the time necessary for the journey from the place of arrest to the court of the magistrate, and no such person shall be detained in custody beyond the said period without the authority of a magistrate.

(3) Nothing in clauses (1) and (2) shall apply to any person-

(a) Who for the time being is an enemy alien; or

(b) Who is arrested or detained under any law providing for preventive detention.

(4) No law providing for preventive detention shall authorize the detention of a person for a period exceeding six months unless an Advisory Board consisting of three persons, of whom two shall be persons who are, or have been, or are qualified to be appointed as, Judges of the

Supreme Court and the other shall be a person who is a senior officer in the service of the Republic, has, after affording him an opportunity of being heard in person, reported before the expiration of the said period of six months that there is, in its opinion, sufficient cause for such detention.

(5) When any person is detained in pursuance of an order made under any law providing for preventive detention, the authority making the order shall, as soon as may be, communicate to such person the grounds on which the order has been made, and shall afford him the earliest opportunity of making a representation against the order.

(6) Parliament may be law prescribes the procedure to be followed by an Advisory Board in an inquiry under clause (4).

article-34. Prohibition of forced labor.

(1) All forms of forced labour are prohibited and any contravention of this provision shall be an offence punishable in accordance with law.

(2) Nothing in this article shall apply to compulsory labour.

(a) by persons undergoing lawful punishment for a criminal offence; or required by any law for public purpose.

Article-35. Protection in respect of trial and punishment.

(1) No person shall be convicted to any offence except for violation of al law in force at the time of the commission of the act charged as an offence, nor be subjected to a penalty greater than, or different from that which might have been inflicted under the law in force at the time of the commission of the offence.

(2) No person shall be prosecuted and punished for the same offence more than once.

(3) Every person accused of a criminal offence shall have the right to a speedy and public trial by an independent and impartial court or tribunal established by law.

(4) No person accused of any offence shall be compelled to be a witness against himself.

(5) No person shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman, or degrading punishment or treatment.

(6) Nothing in clause (3) or clause (5) shall affect the operation of any existing law which prescribes any punishment or procedure for trial.

Article-36. Freedom of movement.

Subject to any reasonable restrictions imposed by law in the public interest, every citizen shall have the right to move freely throughout Bangladesh, to reside and settle in any place therein and to leave and re-enter Bangladesh.

Article-37. Freedom of assembly.

Every citizen shall have the right to assemble and to participate in public meetings and processions peacefully and without arms, subject to any reasonable restrictions imposed by law in the interests of public order health.

Article-38. Freedom of association.

Every citizen shall have the right to form associations or unions, subject to any reasonable restrictions imposed by law in the interests of morality or public order;

Article-39. Freedom of thought and conscience, and of speech.

(1) Freedom or thought and conscience is guaranteed.

(2) Subject to any reasonable restrictions imposed by law in the interests of the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, decency or morality, or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence-

(a) The right of every citizen of freedom of speech and expression; and freedom of the press, are guaranteed.

Article-40. Freedom of profession or occupation.

Subject to any restrictions imposed by law, every citizen possessing such qualifications, if any, as may be prescribed by law in relation to his profession, occupation, trade or business shall have the right to enter upon any lawful profession or occupation, and to conduct any lawful trade or business.

Article-41. Freedom of religion.

(1) Subject to law, public order and morality-

(a) Every citizen has the right to profess, practice or propagate any religion;

(b) Every religious community or denomination has the right to establish, maintain and manage its religious institutions.

(2) No person attending any educational institution shall be required to receive religious instruction, or to take part in or to attend any religious ceremony or worship, if that instruction, ceremony or worship relates to a religion other than his own.

42. Rights to property.

(1) Subject to any restrictions imposed by law, every citizen shall have the right to acquire, hold, transfer or otherwise dispose of property, and no property shall be compulsorily acquired, nationalized or requisitioned save by authority of law.

(2) A law made under clause (1) shall provide for the acquisition, nationalisation or requisition with compensation and shall either fix the amount of compensation or specify the principles on which, and the manner in which, the compensation is to be assessed and paid; but no such law shall be called in question in any court on the ground that any provision in respect of such compensation is not adequate.

(3) Nothing in this article shall affect the operation of any law made before the commencement of the Proclamations (Amendment) Order, 1977 (Proclamations Order No. I of 1977), in so far as it relates to the acquisition, nationalization or acquisition of any property without compensation.

Article-43. Protection of home and correspondence.

Every citizen shall have the right, subject to any reasonable restrictions imposed by law in the interests of the security of the State, public order, public morality or public health-

(a) To be secured in his home against entry, search and seizure; and to the privacy of his correspondence and other means of communication.

Laws inconsistent with fundamental rights to be void.

According to the article-26 of the constitution:

(1) All existing law inconsistent with the provisions of this Part shall, to the extent of such inconsistency, become void on the commencement of this Constitution.

(2) The State shall not make any law inconsistent with any provisions of this Part, and any law so made shall, to the extent of such inconsistency, be void.

Enforcement of fundamental rights.

(1) The right to move the High Court Division in accordance with clause (I) of article 102 for the enforcement of the rights conferred by this Part of guaranteed.

(2) Without prejudice to the powers of the High Court Division under article 102, Parliament may be law empowers any other court, within the local limits of its jurisdiction, to exercise all or any of those powers.

According to the article 102 enforcement of fundamental rights are following ways……

(1) The High Court Division on the application of any person aggrieved, may give such directions or orders to any person or authority, including any person performing any function in connection with the affairs of the Republic, as may be appropriate for the enforcement of any the fundamental rights conferred by Part III of this Constitution. This is called mandamus writ.

(2) The High Court Division may, if satisfied that no other equally efficacious remedy is provided by law- (a) on the application of any person aggrieved, make an order-

(i) directing a person performing any functions in connection with the affairs of the

Republic or of a local authority to refrain from doing that which he is not permitted by law to do or to do that which he is required by law to do; this is called writ of prohibition.

(ii) Declaring that any act done or proceeding taken by a person performing functions in connection with the affairs of the Republic or of a local authority has been done or

taken without lawful authority and is of no legal effect; this is called writ of certiorari.

(b) on the application of any person, make an order-

(i) directing that a person in custody be brought before it so that it may satisfy itself that he is not being held in custody without lawful authority or in an unlawful manner;  this is called writ of habeas .

(ii) requiring a person holding or purporting to hold a public office to show under what authority he claims to hold that office. This is called writ of quo- warranto.