Staff Reporter :
The National Consensus Commission (NCC) is facing difficulties in reaching agreement on three key constitutional reform issues: the appointment process for the chief of the election-time caretaker government, the formation of an upper house of parliament, and the election system for 100 reserved seats for women.
While the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami have submitted similar proposals – particularly regarding the appointment of the caretaker government’s chief adviser – disagreements from other parties, including the National Citizen Party (NCP), have stalled progress.
The NCC is aiming to finalise consensus on 19 major reform areas by 31 July, as part of its effort to draft a national reform charter. However, the second round of dialogue has been delayed, with key sticking points emerging around the aforementioned issues.
There is broad political agreement on the need to reinstate the caretaker government system to oversee national elections, including the structure and duration of such an administration. However, parties remain divided on how the chief adviser should be selected.
BNP has proposed a four-member search committee made up of the Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition, Speaker, and Deputy Speaker (from the opposition).
This committee would select a chief adviser by consensus from a shortlist of 10 candidates-five nominated by the ruling party and five by the opposition. If consensus cannot be reached, BNP has recommended reverting to the 13th Amendment’s process, excluding the provision for the President to head the caretaker government.
Jamaat-e-Islami, in its revised proposal, favours a five-member search committee, adding a representative from the third-largest party in parliament. Their nomination process would include three names each from the ruling and main opposition parties, two from the third-largest party, and one from smaller parties or independents.
In case of a deadlock, they too suggest following the 13th Amendment, minus the presidential option.
Both parties emphasise that the chief adviser should be appointed through consensus within the search committee. BNP has shown flexibility in accepting a five-member structure if it improves inclusivity.
However, parties like the NCP have raised objections to reintroducing provisions from the 13th Amendment due to past controversies. Instead, they advocate for a ranked-choice voting mechanism within the search committee to ensure neutrality and broader acceptability.
The NCC has proposed a hybrid model incorporating consensus-based selection followed by ranked-choice voting as a fallback mechanism. Under this framework, each political party and independent MP would nominate one eligible candidate.
The ruling and opposition parties would then propose three names each, and the third-largest party would nominate two. Each group would select candidates from each other’s lists, and if consensus fails, a ranked-choice vote would determine the final nominee.
NCC member Prof Riaz noted strong opposition to involving the judiciary – particularly retired chief justices – in the appointment process. “The challenge lies in designing a search committee process that can resolve deadlocks while maintaining political trust,” he said.
All major political parties, including BNP, Jamaat, and NCP, have agreed in principle to form a bicameral legislature with a 400-seat Lower House and a newly created 100-seat Upper House. There is also general support for increasing the number of reserved seats for women in the Lower House from 50 to 100.
However, BNP and Jamaat differ on the election method. Jamaat favours proportional representation (PR) based on overall vote share for both the Upper House and women’s seats. BNP, meanwhile, supports PR based on the number of Lower House MPs.
With time running short before the NCC’s deadline, political parties have been urged to revise their stances in the spirit of compromise. The Commission remains hopeful that consensus can still be achieved in the coming days.
