Jurists and political scientists on Sunday suggested options on how to implement the July National Charter, now being finalised, including seeking Supreme Court advice, holding a referendum, or formulating a legal framework order.
They came up with the options while attending a meeting arranged by the National Consensus Commission with the experts on how to legalise and implement the charter.
Amid a demand for ensuring legal obligation for and procedures of implementing the charter, the NCC invited six experts to the meeting for their opinions at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban in Dhaka.
Chaired by the NCC vice-chair Professor Ali Riaz, the experts suggested multiple options, including sending a reference to the Supreme Court seeking its advice as per the article 106 of the constitution, holding a referendum, and formulating a legal framework order to render the charter a legal obligation, said an NCC member who preferred anonymity.聽聽聽
They also discussed the pros and cons of a referendum and a legal framework order.聽
The meeting was joined by Justice MA Matin, Justice Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury, Dhaka University law faculty dean Professor Muhammad Ekramul Haque and Supreme Court lawyers Sharif Bhuiyan, Imran A Siddiq, and Tanim Hossain Shawan.
Among them, Muhammad Ekramul Haque, Sharif Bhuiyan, and Imran A Siddiq previously served on the Constitution Reform Commission while Tanim Hossain Shawan was a member of the Judiciary Reform Commission.
After the meeting, Sharif Bhuiyan told 抖阴精品 that the discussion focused on making the July Charter a legal obligation for the next elected government and possible methods of implementing the recommendations contained in the charter.
鈥楢 legal solution is possible, but it requires consensus among the parties,鈥� he said.
Asked about the future of the key recommendations agreed with dissent after the endorsement of the July Charter by political parties, he said that the recommendations enjoying overwhelming support could be implemented.
鈥楬owever, if a party that has opposed a particular recommendation comes to power, it may choose not to implement it. To this end, we have discussed possible legal solutions along with their pros and cons,鈥� Sharif added without elaborating.
The NCC informed the experts that they would be invited again for further discussions, if necessary.
NCC members Justice Md Emdadul Haque, Dr Iftekharuzzaman, Dr Badiul Alam Majumder, Safar Raj Hossain, Dr Md Ayub Mia, and the Chief Adviser鈥檚 Special Assistant for Reforms, Monir Haidar, were present at the meeting.
After the fall of the Awami League regime past year, the interim government led by Professor Muhammad Yunus formed 11 reform commissions as part of state reforms.
On February 12, the government formed the National Consensus Commission to facilitate political parties to reach consensus on the recommendations made by the six reform commissions covering the constitution, judiciary, electoral system, police, public administration, and Anti-Corruption Commission.
The consensus commission held two rounds of dialogue 鈥� the first one with 38 parties and the second with 30 -- between March 20 and July 31, aiming to finalise the July National Charter 2025 in August.
Amid the demand from several parties for legalising the charter, the commission initiated the discussion with the experts yesterday. After having the expert opinions, the commission would again invite the political parties for a dialogue to finalise the charter.
