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The date of signing the July National Charter 2025 remains uncertain, as the National Consensus Commission is yet to finalise the draft charter while several political parties have vowed not to endorse it without a clear commitment to legally enforce the charter.

The consensus commission had planned to finalise the charter by July 31and there was an expectation that the charter would be signed before August 5.

After holding 23 sessions since June 3, the commission on Thursday wrapped up its second round of dialogue with 30 political parties, claiming to have reached consensus on 19 key reform issues.

But many parties questioned the closure of the dialogue, intended to produce a consensus-based charter, without any clear roadmap for the implementation of the document.

Although NCC vice-chair Professor Ali Riaz earlier said that the responsibility to implement the charter lay with the political parties due to the commission’s limited mandate, he said on Thursday, ‘The commission would soon invite the parties again to discuss the way forward on the implementation.’

In the wake of the Awami League regime’s fall from power in August 2024 following the July uprising, the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government established 11 reform commissions to initiate state reforms. To facilitate building political consensus on the proposals, the National Consensus Commission was formed on February 12 this year.

In March, the consensus commission issued a 166-point questionnaire to 38 political parties, outlining six possible options for adopting the agreed reforms.

The options included passing an ordinance, holding a referendum before or during the general election, forming a constituent assembly, making post-election constitutional amendments, or approval by the next elected parliament, which would also work as a constituent assembly.

The National Citizen Party, formed by the July uprising organisers, demanded a constituent assembly, while the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami proposed a referendum. In contrast, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, its like-minded allies, and left-leaning parties insisted that only an elected parliament would have the authority to enact reforms.

Although the Jamaat and NCP did not specify their earlier choices during the  final days of the second round dialogue, their leaders strongly demanded that the National Consensus Commission should include a clear legal framework for adopting the reform agenda.

Jamaat nayeb-e-amir Syed Abdullah Muhammad Taher told ¶¶Òõ¾«Æ·, ‘The charter must have a legal basis. Otherwise, the consensus building will be futile.’

Meanwhile, the BNP and some other parties voiced support for the NCC proposal that the signatory parties must commit to implementing the July Charter within two years of the next parliament’s formation.

‘When the July Charter will be signed by the NCC members, including commission chair Professor Muhammad Yunus, and by the political parties concerned, it will become a ‘crucial’ document binding on the elected members of the next parliament,’ said BNP standing committee member Salahuddin Ahmed.

Amid diverging views, the consensus commission may reconvene the relevant parties next week to finalise the implementation pathway. In the meantime, the commission will finalise the charter, said Monir Haidar, special assistant to the chief adviser for reforms. However, he gave no timeline when speaking on Thursday.

Most party representatives told ¶¶Òõ¾«Æ· that they viewed the commission’s second-round dialogue positively, as it brought together parties with different ideologies and visions.

Amar Bangladesh Party chair Mojibur Rahman Monju termed the outcome of the NCC dialogue a ‘milestone’ and a guideline for the future political operation.  

Although the discussions did not touch on reforms in local administration, labour, health, media, and women’s affairs, political leaders observed that consensus-building on major state reforms marked meaningful progress in the country’s democratic transition.

‘Our primary objective was to resolve election-related issues first. The dialogue covered all the issues crucial for the next election,’ said Bangladesh Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal-Jasod’s presidium member Mushtuq Husain, adding that the other important issues would also be addressed in different ways.

On Thursday, NCC vice-chair Ali Riaz declared that consensus had been reached on 19 issues, adding that 30 political parties had reached a broader agreement on nine, while the remaining 10 would carry notes of dissent.

The agreed nine issues include opposition lawmakers-chaired parliamentary standing committees for public accounts, privileges, estimates, and public undertakings, the delimitation of electoral constituencies, modified presidential clemency powers, fresh procedures for declaring a state of emergency, new procedure for constitutional amendments, a 10-year term limit for the prime minister, the formation of an independent police commission, embedding the process of appointing the Election Commission in the constitution, and the expansion of citizens’ basic rights.

The 10 issues with dissenting opinions include amending article 70 of the constitution, women’s representation in the parliament, decentralisation of the judiciary and Supreme Court, appointment of the chief justice, the prime minister holding multiple offices, enshrining new procedures for appointing the Public Service Commission, Anti-Corruption Commission, Comptroller and Auditor General, and Ombudsman, forming a 100-member upper house, the presidential election method, presidential powers, selection of the chief adviser under the caretaker government, and the fundamental principles of the state.

Ganosamhati Andolan executive coordinator Abul Hassan Rubel observed that the NCC dialogue outcome was an advancement towards a democratic pathway. ‘But the challenges exist regarding the implementation of the agreed reforms. My party recommends a constitutional reform council with voters’ mandate to adopt the reforms,’ he said.

Left-leaning parties, including the Communist Party of Bangladesh, Socialist Party of Bangladesh, Socialist Party of Bangladesh (Marxist), and Bangladesh Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (Jasod) boycotted the consensus-building dialogue in protest of the NCC position on fundamental state principles.

As part of its charter-drafting efforts, the consensus commission presented a 62-point list addressing reform of the constitution, electoral system, public administration, judiciary, and the Anti-Corruption Commission. The commission claimed that the points were agreed during its first-round dialogue separately attended by 38 political parties.

However, in reality, support for many of these proposals varied as some were agreed by over 30 parties while others received backing from fewer than 25.

Expressing disappointment, NCP member secretary Akhter Hossen said that an extended second-round dialogue would have brought more results.

 ‘For example, the parties agreed to expand the citizen’s basic rights. But we could not finalise the additional basic rights due to the conclusion of the dialogue,’ he said.