July Charter to shape constitution rewrite

The government will proceed with constitutional amendments by adhering to the July National Charter “word by word” rather than being guided by emotion or political ideology, Law Minister Md Asaduzzaman said on Tuesday, as a parliamentary special committee began work on proposals aimed at reshaping the Constitution.

“We cannot move merely on emotions by bypassing the July National Charter or imposing any political ideology or agenda.

We will bring a constitutional amendment proposal before Parliament by following the July Charter word-by-word,” the law minister told reporters after the committee’s inaugural meeting at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban.

The parliamentary special committee on constitutional amendment held its first meeting from around 12:30pm to 1:30pm in the Cabinet Room of Parliament, where members discussed the roadmap for consultations with political parties, constitutional experts and other stakeholders.

Committee chairman and Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said the body would prepare an “acceptable” constitutional amendment proposal by incorporating views from political parties and people from all walks of life.

“We want to prepare an acceptable amendment proposal with the opinions of people from all classes and professions, including political parties,” he said.

Salahuddin said the committee would adopt an open and inclusive approach throughout the process.

“As we are liberal and open, we will listen to everyone. We will incorporate all necessary proposals for amendments and prepare our report accordingly,” he said.

He said the committee’s recommendations would eventually be converted into a constitutional amendment bill to be placed before Parliament.

“The bill will be discussed in Parliament, and we want to adopt the amendment through understanding so that it reflects public expectations,” he said.

The committee also intends to incorporate state structure-related democratic reform commitments into its recommendations, he added.

According to Salahuddin, the first meeting focused on preparing a list of individuals and organisations to be consulted and finalising a consultation schedule.

The committee plans to seek opinions from constitutional experts, lawyers, political parties, professional organisations and other stakeholders.

Individuals or organisations wishing to submit proposals will also be given the opportunity to do so, either during committee meetings or in writing.

Asked about the timeframe for submitting the report, Salahuddin said no deadline had yet been fixed.

On the opposition’s absence from the committee, he said the government had requested opposition parties to nominate five representatives but had yet to receive their names.

“We still hope they will reconsider and submit the names. We will also hold discussions with them,” he said.

He added that even if the opposition does not nominate members, the committee will seek the opinions of all opposition lawmakers.

“We want to bring forward an acceptable amendment that reflects public aspirations. We want to adopt a report through discussions with everyone,” he said.

The committee will review 48 constitutional reform proposals contained in the July National Charter. Proposals on which political parties reached consensus will be included in its recommendations, while issues on which the BNP registered dissent will be recorded as notes of dissent.

Salahuddin said the committee would also examine constitutional reform commitments contained in the BNP’s election manifesto that were not incorporated into the July National Charter.

Referring to the July 2024 mass uprising, he said public expectations had risen significantly and stressed the need to rebuild Bangladesh in line with the aspirations of those who sacrificed their lives during the movement.

The law minister said the constitutional amendment process would uphold both the July National Charter and the spirit of the July uprising.

He said the committee would submit proposals aimed at building what he described as a new Bangladesh in line with the aspirations of those killed during the July movement.

Responding to a question on whether the amendment process would remain credible without the opposition’s participation, Asaduzzaman said the government would make every effort to secure the opposition’s recommendations.

He noted that many opposition proposals had already been reflected in the July National Charter, which was signed by 33 political parties.

The minister said the committee had taken several policy-level decisions at its first meeting regarding the consultation process.

As part of that process, it will hold discussions with families of those killed in the July uprising, July warriors, leaders of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, representatives of different professions, journalists, members of the Supreme Court Bar Association, retired judges and other stakeholders.

Chief Whip Nurul Islam Moni, also a committee member, expressed hope that the opposition would eventually join the process.

“The door remains open for them at all times,” he said.

Moni added that there was no distinction between constitutional amendment and constitutional reform, arguing that any amendment to the Constitution amounted to reform.

Among those attending the meeting were parliamentary standing committee chairmen Zainul Abedin and Andaleeve Rahman, State Minister for Planning Zonayed Abdur Rahim Saki, State Minister for Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Nurul Haque, State Minister for Land Mir Mohammed Helal Uddin, State Minister for Social Welfare Farzana Sharmin, Shakila Farzana and Mahmudul Hoque Rubel.

Committee member and Islami Andolan Bangladesh lawmaker Md Oli Ullah was absent from the meeting.