In less than 24 hours of his becoming the president through a self-styled national convention, Huda announced his resignation at an impromptu news conference in the capital yesterday evening.

Barrister Nazmul Huda's resignation came hard on the heels of a rival faction's news briefing on the same day questioning his authority to form the forum's committee.

While the chief patron of the JAF, Prime Minister Khaleda Zia asked both the feuding factions of the pro-BNP lawyers' forum to refrain from holding conventions, the Huda faction convened on Thursday and announced a 301-strong central committee of the JAF with Nazmul Huda as its president and one of his opponents from the rival faction, Barrister Aminul Haque, as the general secretary.

Almost immediately after the committee formation by the Huda faction, rivals within the JAF, TH Khan and Aminul Haque, held a meeting Thursday night to denounce it.

Briefing journalists yesterday, president of another faction, TH Khan said Huda had held the convention in violation of Khaleda Zia's directive. Post and Telecommunications Minister Barrister Aminul Haque was also present.

Huda, however, denied violating any directive from the prime minister and claimed having tried his best to unite the pro-BNP lawyers under a single umbrella by conceding vital positions in the JAF central committee to TH Khan and other rivals.

Asked about whether he was stepping down following direction from higher authorities in the BNP, Nazmul Huda replied in the negative.

He said he was relinquishing the JAF president's post as his move to unite the pro-government lawyers had failed.

TH Khan and Aminul, however, said Huda's resignation bears no significance as his election as the JAF president was illegal in the first place.

At Thursday's convention held on the Supreme Court premises, Nazmul Huda said, "We formed the forum in 1991 but failed to strengthen our position due to lack of dynamic leadership."

"We have to strengthen our position before the next election in the Supreme Court Bar Association, which will be held in March," he added.

He also cut a 70-pound cake at the convention to mark the 70th birth anniversary of late president Ziaur Rahman.

In October last year, Huda, the erstwhile vice-president of the forum, unilaterally dissolved the central committee before forming a 501-member convening committee headed by himself.