tried to reaffirm his position by a relieving number of military officers of their government posts and returning them to their units. This proved to be a provocation to Ershad and the other chiefs. Coup On March 24, 1982, troops loyal to Lt. Gen. Ershad forced the president Abdus Sattar and the vice-president to resign. Ershad imposed martial law and declared himself the chief martial law administrator. He appointed the chiefs of the navy and the air force as deputy chief martial law administrators. He also suspended fundamental civil rights and the Constitution of Bangladesh, but did not abrogate it. Three days after the coup, a Supreme Court of Bangladesh justice Abul Fazal Muhammad Ahsanuddin Chowdhury was appointed president by Ershad, who also took the title of president of the council of ministers. Ershad declared that he had undertaken the coup to save the country from the corruption and inefficiency of the BNP-led government. The Parliament of Bangladesh was dissolved and all political parties banned. Several hundred politicians were arrested on charges of corruption. In 1983, Ershad took over as president of Bangladesh. Seventh amendment In parliamentary elections held in 1986 , the Jatiyo Party, founded by Ershad earlier that year, won an absolute majority even as opposition political parties boycotted the election. Ershad used his party's majority to pass the seventh amendment to the Constitution of Bangladesh, which legitimised the 1982 coup, his ascension to power and his martial law rule. The amendment also ratified the martial law decrees and actions of the government. In 2010, the High Court Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh officially struck down the seventh amendment and declared Ershad's coup and martial law rule as illegal. The verdict declared that the constitution of Bangladesh could not be subordinate to martial law, nor did it allow any temporary suspension of the constitution itself. The Supreme Court named Ershad along with Ziaur Rahman and Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad as "usurpers" of power from legitimate governments. The Supreme Court also stated that the government and parliament could decide whether or not to take action against Ershad for the illegal usurpation and pass a law to enable a trial and prevent any future usurpations. See also Military coups in Bangladesh Notes and references Notes References Military coups in Bangladesh Bangladesh Coup D'etat, 1982 1982 in military history 1980s coups d'état and coup attempts 1982 crimes in Bangladesh