A constitutional standoff unfolded in Bangladesh’s newly elected parliament on Tuesday after right-wing Jamaat-e-Islami lawmakers refused to take the oath of office, citing the Bangladesh Nationalist Party decision to decline a parallel pledge as members of the proposed Constitution Reform Council.
Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasirudin administered the oath to BNP legislators inside the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban in the first phase of proceedings. Jamaat MPs, scheduled to be sworn in next, halted the process after the BNP rejected taking a second oath linked to endorsing a constitutional reform referendum.
Jamaat deputy chief Abdullah Mohammad Taher said his party would not proceed unless BNP lawmakers also took the oath as members of the Constitution Reform Council. “Parliament without constitutional reform is meaningless,” he stated, underscoring his party’s position that the proposed council must be institutionally recognised before normal parliamentary functions resume.
The second oath seeks to bind legislators to implement the “July Charter”, an extensive 84-point reform blueprint that calls for a major rewriting of the Constitution. According to the Election Commission, over 60 percent of voters backed the proposal in a referendum.
However, BNP standing committee member and newly elected MP Salahuddin Ahmed maintained that there is no constitutional provision yet establishing the council. Acting on instructions from party chairman Tarique Rahman, BNP legislators declined the additional pledge, asserting that they were elected solely as members of parliament.
In the 13th parliamentary elections, the BNP secured 209 of 297 seats, while Jamaat won 68. The Awami League, led by former premier Sheikh Hasina, was barred from contesting.
President Mohammad Shahabuddin is scheduled to administer the oath of the new cabinet later in the day, with Rahman expected to assume office as Prime Minister.
International dignitaries, including Om Birla, Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu, Turkish official Beris Ekinci and Sri Lanka’s Health and Mass Media Minister Dr Nalinda Jayatissa, are expected to attend the swearing-in ceremony. [KNT]
