Jatiya Party (JaPa) has proposed at least 19 amendments to the constitution.
Party Chairman GM Quader said that the goal of these proposals is to recommend measures that would free Parliament from the complete control of the prime minister.
He said: “We have tried to establish a system of power-sharing between the president and the prime minister. This has been done to maintain the balance of state authority. Our objective is to ensure that one individual, the prime minister, does not accumulate unilateral control of all state powers and turn into an authoritarian or dictatorial figure.”
GM Quader shared these proposals for constitutional reforms during a press conference in Banani, Dhaka.
At the beginning of his speech, he explained that the draft of the constitution and rules of procedure in Bangladesh were initially designed to allow the prime minister or the head of the government to have complete control over Parliament.
This power was given through the inclusion of Article 70 in the constitution.
He noted: “This provision denies the right of the Members of Parliament (MPs), elected by the people, to vote outside of their party's decision during parliamentary voting, which is commonly known as party whips. It ensures that the prime minister secures the support of party MPs in the decision-making process. The government is formed by the majority vote of MPs in Parliament.”
He emphasized that most parliamentary decisions are made based on majority votes, except for constitutional amendments, which require a two-thirds majority. Therefore, Article 70 of the constitution grants the prime minister the authority to make unilateral decisions and pass them in Parliament with majority votes.
Quader also said: “If the head of the government and the prime minister were two separate individuals, there might have been some balance in the Prime Minister’s complete control over Parliament. However, historically, this has never happened, and whenever there has been an opportunity, the party leader has assumed the position of prime minister.”
The JaPa Chairman further stated: “The caretaker government system must be restored. The Chief Adviser should not come from the judiciary, as this could compromise the independence and neutrality of the judiciary. Additionally, it could create an undesirable example of mixing politics and the executive with the judiciary.”
He mentioned that the proposed president, elected with a three-fourths majority in Parliament, could be considered a consensus candidate and lead the caretaker government. After repealing the 15th Amendment, changes could be made according to Article 58 (b) of the Constitution.
The Jatiya Party leader also said: “If the 15th Amendment is repealed, Article 7(c) would be removed. Under the current circumstances, Article 7(c) is deemed unjustifiable. Article 7(b) of the constitution would also be repealed.”
