The Communist Party of Bangladesh on Tuesday urged the National Consensus Commission to advance only crucial reforms needed for credible elections so that the next parliament could fulfill the aspirations underlying the July 2024 uprising.
During a meeting with the NCC at the LD Hall of Jatiya Sangsad in the capital Dhaka, CPB leaders emphasised that although the 1972 constitution has shortcomings, it requires amendments, not a complete rewrite.
CPB general secretary Ruhin Hossain Prince told reporters, 鈥楢s the upcoming [Jatiya Sangsad] elections are our foremost priority, the NCC should avoid raising any controversial issues that could delay it [the polls].鈥�
An 11-member CPB delegation to the meeting, led by party president Shah Alam, discussed reform proposals on the constitution, electoral process and Anti-Corruption Commission with the NCC.
On electoral reforms, the CPB team urged the NCC to host multi-party discussions to find mechanisms to do away with the use of black money, muscle power and terror, communal and regional propaganda, and bureaucratic bias in both local and national elections.
Recalling the history of anti-colonial movements and the people鈥檚 struggle for independence, Prince said successive regimes in the independent Bangladesh undermined democracy that ultimately led to the uprisings in 1990 and 2024.
He spoke against the Constitution Reform Commission鈥檚 proposed preamble, saying, 鈥業t seems to replace the legacy of the 1971 Liberation War with the 2024 uprising. We have warned the commission against such revisions that could jeopardise the ongoing process for building consensus among the political parties.鈥�
The CPB also urged the NCC to keep the constitution鈥檚 existing fundamental principles, which are nationalism, socialism, democracy, and secularism.
The Constitution Reform Commission has proposed equality, human dignity, social justice, pluralism, and democracy as the fundamental principles.
The CPB delegation opposed several of the commission鈥檚 key proposals, including the introduction of a bicameral parliament, the formation of a national constitutional council, and provisions for referendums.
The reform commission has proposed a 505-member bicameral parliament, a nine-member national constitutional council chaired by the president and the option of holding referendums on decisions passed by a two-thirds majority in the bicameral parliament.
鈥楪iven the present context, we disagree to these proposals. Only an elected parliament should decide on such major reforms,鈥� said the CPB general secretary.
The CPB also recommended constitutional guarantees for realising the basic human needs, including food, clothing, shelter, education, and healthcare.
CPB president Shah Alam said that the July 2024 uprising was aimed at restoring democracy, not to return the country to the politics of 1947 or of the colonial era.
NCC members Badiul Alam Majumder, Justice Md Emdadul Haque, Safar Raj Hossain, Md Ayub Mia, and Iftekharuzzaman, and the chief adviser鈥檚 special assistant Monir Haidar attended the meeting.
