The Bangladesh Nationalist Party and some other political parties expressed their reservation about the newly floated National Citizen Party鈥檚 demand for holding a constituent assembly election and the establishment of a 鈥榮econd republic鈥�.
The BNP ruled out any possibility of the national consensus on these issues, saying that they did not find any necessity of adopting a new constitution in the present context.
鈥業 don鈥檛 think there will be any consensus on this issue (second republic) since we are not a new state. As a major political party, the BNP is saying 鈥渘o鈥�. So, where should be the consensus?鈥� BNP standing committee member Salahuddin told 抖阴精品 on Sunday.
He said that the constituent assembly election was needed for a new state and a new constitution but Bangladesh is a 54-year old state.
Student and youth leaders of the July-August uprising that ousted the Awami League regime on August 5, 2024 flouted the National Citizen Party on February 28, aiming at establishing a second republic in Bangladesh.
During the announcement of the new party, its convener Nahid Islam declared that all possibilities of re-establishing a constitutional dictatorship must be eliminated by drafting a new democratic constitution.
He said that one of their primary goals was to achieve this through the election of a constituent assembly to establish the desired second republic.
Recently, in a press conference, Nahid said that if political parties could reach a consensus, it would be possible to hold both the constituent assembly and parliamentary elections simultaneously within the desired timeframe.
BNP leader Salahuddin thought that there was no possibility of national consensus on the constituent assembly elections and the establishment of a second republic as proposed by the NCP.
鈥楢s a political party, NCP can propose this. But, if they want to impose it on the nation, the nation will have to agree,鈥� Salahuddin said.
Salahuddin urged the leaders of the NCP to think carefully before making decisions and said that using different dictionary words without understanding their meanings did not look good.
鈥楾he political rhetoric the new party is attempting to create through various statements does not match with any rules,鈥� he said.
Bangladesh is a 54-year-old state and the BNP considers it to be an independent and sovereign nation, Salahuddin said.
He said that there might be a question of whether the existing constitution was acceptable to everyone.
鈥楾he answer is, of course, 鈥渘ot鈥�,鈥� the BNP leader said.
鈥楾hrough the fifteenth amendment, the democratic character of the constitution was changed to ensure a one-party system,鈥� he mentioned.
鈥楤angladesh is a republic, and changing its structure to create a second republic may be part of the political programme of the newly formed NCP. But it cannot be imposed on the nation,鈥� Salahuddin said.
Jatiya Party secretary general Md Mujibul Haque Chunnu said that it was unclear what the new party meant by the concept of a 鈥榮econd republic鈥�.
He said that Bangladesh emerged through a war of independence in 1971 and its constitution was enacted in 1972.
Given this history, Mujibul said that there was no justification for establishing a second republic or holding a constituent assembly election to draft a new constitution.
He said that various amendments introduced many anti-people and undemocratic elements to the constitution, but it could be made pro-people through further revisions as needed.
Mujibul said that only an elected parliament had the authority to amend the constitution and urged the interim government to hold the national election as soon as possible.
He said that the elected representatives would make the necessary constitutional changes and that any compromise on the principles of the war of independence and independence would not be accepted in the amendment process.
Another BNP standing committee member Gayeshwar Chandra Roy described the demand for adopting a new constitution through a constituent assembly as 鈥榶ouths鈥� emotion鈥�.
He said that their demands must be judged in light of reality to determine whether they were logical.
鈥楾he country became independent in 1971,鈥� Gayeshwar said and wanted to know the reasons for the need for a second republic.
鈥榃e do not see the necessity of drafting a new constitution, as it may be an attempt to alter its core principles鈥攏ationalism, socialism, democracy, and secularism,鈥� said Communist Party of Bangladesh general secretary Ruhin Hossain Prince.
Ruhin said that the CPB did not support the call for a second republic and urged the interim government not to consider such demands as Bangladesh achieved its independence through a war.
Ganosamhati Andolan chief coordinator Zonayed Saki stated that they, for the past 15 years, had been demanding a new political settlement, the democratic transformation of the constitution through a constituent assembly election or a reform assembly election, the establishment of a second republic and a new national charter for Bangladesh.
鈥業 do not wish to comment on the demand of the NCP. I simply want to say that national consensus is the only way to fulfil the demands,鈥� he said.
Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami assistant secretary general Ahsanul Mahboob Zubair said that any political party could demand a new constitution, a constituent assembly election, or a second republic but Jamaat did not make such a demand.
鈥榃e have submitted our proposals to the constitution reform commission for amendments to the existing constitution, not for a new one,鈥� he clarified.
Zubair said that the proposals from all the parties would be discussed for a national consensus.
鈥楤ut, right now, it cannot be determined the issues on which the national consensus would be made,鈥� he said.
