BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir yesterday said the ruling Awami League is furious after release of the full verdict that declared the 16th amendment to the constitution illegal.

“Their (AL leaders) remarks are blatant, indecent and tantamount to contempt of court,” Fakhrul said while addressing a programme at the party's Nayapaltan office in Dhaka.

Referring to Food Minister Qamrul Islam's demand for the chief justice's resignation, Fakhrul said, “The truth has come out through scrapping of the 16th amendment”.

Meanwhile, BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi yesterday at a press briefing also criticised Qamrul. “The minister [Qamrul] gets scared by the rule of law as he cannot tolerate truth and justice,” he alleged.

While addressing a discussion in the capital on Thursday, Qamrul demanded removal of the chief justice for his “irrelevant and objectionable observations” in the verdict in the 16th amendment case.

“If the chief justice doesn't step down within this month, lawyers would launch a vigorous movement next month to remove him,” he said.