Students often open a bare act at section 1 and read forwards until they lose concentration. Statutes are not novels. They are reference documents with a structure, and reading them well means using that structure.
1. Start with the definitions
Most codes define their key terms near the beginning — section 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure, section 3 of the Evidence Act. Read the definitions first and keep them open while you read the rest. Many MCQs test nothing more than a definition.
2. Map the structure
Read the arrangement of sections and write a one-page outline: parts, chapters and the range of sections in each. When a problem question mentions bail, you should know without searching that you are in sections 496 to 498 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
3. Read sections as checklists
Break each important section into its elements. Section 378 of the Penal Code becomes five elements; section 11 of the Code of Civil Procedure becomes five conditions. Checklists are easier to remember and easier to apply in an answer.
4. Read the explanations, provisos and illustrations
Explanations and provisos often contain the point an examiner wants you to find — constructive res judicata sits in Explanation IV to section 11. Illustrations show how the drafters expected a section to apply.
5. Always use the current official text
Bare acts are amended. Use the official Laws of Bangladesh website for the current text, and note the date you checked it.