The second round of the National Consensus Commission-led dialogue with political parties will resume on Tuesday after a 13-day break for the Eid-ul-Azha holiday.
An NCC press release issued on Sunday said that the agenda for the dialogue includes the reform of Article 70 of the constitution, the selection of parliamentary standing committee chairpersons, representation of women in the legislature, the possibility of a bicameral parliament and the appointment process of the chief justice.
The second round of the NCC dialogue has drawn special attention in the political arena as chief adviser Professor Mohammad Yunus and BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman agreed during a meeting in London on Friday that Bangladesh鈥檚 next national elections could be held in mid-February 2026.
A joint statement issued after the meeting quoted Professor Yunus as saying, 鈥業n that case, sufficient progress on reforms and trial will need to be made by that time.鈥�
Most political parties in Bangladesh welcomed the outcome of the London meeting as a positive and constructive step towards a democratic transition, seeing it as a potential breakthrough in the ongoing political stalemate.
In response, the BNP and several other parties have begun outlining election-centric programmes, signalling a shift towards preparations for potential participation in the upcoming national election.
In the backdrop of this development, the second round of the NCC dialogue is expected to play a crucial role in encouraging both political parties and the government to finalise the July Charter, which outlines key reform issues.
NCC vice-chairman Ali Riaz and representatives of participating political parties will brief journalists following the meeting, while Bangladesh Television News will broadcast the proceedings live, the release added.
The interim government, led by chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus, also the NCC chair, formed the commission on February 12 to build political consensus on state reform issues.
The urgency of state reforms arose after the fall of the Awami League government on August 5, 2024 amid a mass uprising.
Professor Yunus inaugurated the NCC-led dialogue with political parties on February 15.
Following feedback from political parties on 166 key reform proposals submitted by five commissions covering constitutional, judicial, electoral, public administration and Anti-Corruption Commission reforms, the NCC began party-individual dialogues on March 20.
By May 19, a total of 33 political parties participated in the first round of the NCC-led dialogue. All sessions were held at the LD Hall of Jatiya Sangsad in Dhaka.
The second round of dialogue was inaugurated by the chief adviser on June 2 at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka.
Before the Eid vacation that began on June 5, the NCC held two days of all-party dialogue.
The drafting of a political consensus-based national charter by July is the expected outcome of the ongoing dialogue.