Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury seemingly “changed” her previous stance on accepting the opposition’s adjournment motion on the restoration of the caretaker government, a provition that Sheikh Hasina's government dropped from the Constitution through 15th ammendment.
Discussing an adjournment motion is very sensitive for the treasury bench and the speaker usually suspends all regular business on any particular day the issue is to be discussed.
“Let them come first. Then I will see what I can do. In addition to the adjournment motion, there are lots of other important issues,” Shirin told the Dhaka Tribune Sunday at her parliament office.
AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon, the BNP lawmaker from Noakhali-1 constituency from where the speaker is supposed contest in the next parliamentary polls, submitted an adjournment motion on the restoration of the non-party caretaker government.
Last week, the speaker told journalists she might accept the adjournment motion on the restoration of the caretaker government, in line with the rules of procedure of parliament.
“I hope they [the opposition] will join and stay in the House,” said Sharmin.
The speaker said the rules of procedure restrict her from accepting the adjournment motion during the budget session.
“The business advisory committee will decide the tenure of the session tomorrow. I am not sure how long the budget session will continue,” she said Sunday.
According to the rules of procedure, the speaker can accept Khokon’s adjournment motion after the passage of national budget on June 30. If the BNP boycotts the budget session, the speaker is unlikely to accept the adjournment motion.
“If the two parties agree, the president can convene a special session in consultation with the Leader of the House,” said the speaker.
Academics often interpret discussions on adjournment motions as a failure of the government in the particular sector in question.
According to records, no adjournment proposal either from the opposition or the treasury benches were discussed in the past 19 years, the last discussion having taken place on September 20, 1993, during the BNP-led fifth parliament.
In the history of parliamentary politics in Bangladesh, only four out of over 11,500 adjournment proposals on different important public issues were discussed in the House.
Parliament is set to start its budget session on Monday with a good chance of the BNP and its allies joining.