The 13th parliament on Thursday elected BNP Standing Committee member and MP Major (retd) Hafiz Uddin Ahmad as the new speaker, during the first sitting of the newly formed House.
The session began at 11:05am with a recitation from the Holy Quran, a month after the 13th parliamentary elections.
Veteran MP Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain presided over the sitting with the unanimous backing of lawmakers in the absence of the speaker and deputy speaker of the 12th parliament.
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman entered the chamber at 10:55 am, where MPs from both the government and opposition benches welcomed him by thumping their desks.
It was the first time he attended the opening session of parliament as an MP.
With the speaker’s chair vacant, the session initially proceeded under Mosharraf’s supervision.
Tarique later stood and proposed Mosharraf’s name to preside over the sitting and begin the proceedings.
After taking the chair, Mosharraf informed the House that only one nomination had been submitted for the post of speaker.
The nominee was Major (retd) Hafiz Uddin Ahmad, a BNP standing committee member and member of parliament.
Mosharraf said the nominee had agreed to take on the responsibility.
He invited MP Nurul Islam to place the proposal before the House. Nurul Islam formally moved the motion, which was seconded by MP Rakibul Islam.
Following the submission of the proposal, Mosharraf put the motion to a vote in the House, and it was adopted with a unanimous “yes.”
Hafiz Uddin Ahmad, a sixth-term elected MP, is one of the senior parliamentarians of the ruling party, and currently he is representing Bhola-3 constituency in this parliament.
The 13th national parliament convened 20 months after the formation of the interim government that followed the July Uprising in 2024.
According to the day’s agenda, the House is scheduled to elect the deputy speaker, present 133 ordinances, and hear an address from the president.
