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Parliament on Monday formed a special committee to draft constitutional amendments despite strong objections from the opposition, triggering a walkout from the House over differences on implementing the outcome of the February 12 referendum.
Chief Whip Nurul Islam Moni placed the proposal to establish the Constitutional Amendment-related Special Committee, which was approved by a voice vote.
The 12-member committee will be chaired by Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed, with provisions to expand it to 17 members by including representatives from the opposition.
The committee comprises eight lawmakers from the ruling BNP and one member each from Bangladesh Jatiya Party (BJP), Ganosamhati Andolon, Gono Odhikar Parishad (GOP) and Islami Andolan Bangladesh.
The BNP members are Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed, Chief Whip Nurul Islam Moni, Law Minister Md Asaduzzaman, Zainul Abedin, State Minister Mir Mohammed Helal Uddin, State Minister Farzana Sharmin, Mahmudul Hoque Rubel and Shakila Farzana.
The remaining members are State Minister Zonayed Abdur Rahim Saki of Ganosamhati Andolon, Andaleeve Rahman of Bangladesh Jatiya Party, State Minister Nurul Haque of Gono Odhikar Parishad and Oli Ullah of Islami Andolan Bangladesh.
Before walking out, Opposition Leader Dr Shafiqur Rahman opposed the formation of the committee, arguing that it undermined the public mandate expressed through the February 12 referendum on constitutional reform.
He said the opposition had never agreed to nominate representatives to the committee because it did not accept the initiative in principle.
Shafiqur also argued that opposition lawmakers had taken two oaths—one as Members of Parliament and another as members of the Constitution Reform Council—and maintained that both remained valid.
“If this committee is formed to bypass the implementation of the referendum verdict, we reject the proposal,” he said, adding that the opposition’s walkout was intended to protest what it viewed as the government’s failure to honour the will of the people.
Responding to the criticism, Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said the government remains committed to fulfilling the aspirations of the July mass uprising, including repealing the Constitution’s 15th Amendment.
Rejecting the opposition’s claim regarding two oaths, the minister said Parliament was elected under the existing Constitution and the current session was convened in accordance with it.
“If they say they have taken two oaths, we have not taken any such second oath,” he said, adding that any oath taken as a member of the Constitution Reform Council has no constitutional or legal standing.
Salahuddin said the government intends to respect the public verdict expressed through the referendum.
However, he stressed that the Constitution must first be amended before the referendum’s outcome can be formally implemented.
He added that if political consensus emerges on incorporating provisions related to the Constitution Reform Council into the Constitution, those issues could be considered by the newly formed constitutional amendment committee.
