The National Citizen Party (NCP) has announced a wide-ranging proposal for fundamental reforms to Bangladesh's constitutional framework and governance structure.
The initiative, announced through a press release on Tuesday, aims to decentralize power, ensure accountability, and restore democratic norms across state institutions.
The NCP presented these plans to the National Consensus Committee earlier in the day.
Constitutional framework reforms
The NCP proposes the formation of a National Constitutional Council (NCC) that would ensure accountability within the executive branch.
Under the proposed system, the NCC would serve as the sole recommending body for key constitutional appointments, with the president making appointments based exclusively on these recommendations.
The NCP proposal excludes only positions in the defence forces and the attorney general's office from this arrangement.
The party also advocates for a significant restructuring of the legislature, recommending a bicameral system with a lower house elected through first-past-the-post voting and an upper house based on proportional representation.
This upper house would have several crucial responsibilities, including passing constitutional amendments with a two-thirds majority, reviewing bills from the lower house, approving international treaties, and monitoring public institutions.
According to the NCP, the reforms would enhance parliamentary democracy by introducing constitutional safeguards allowing MPs to express opinions freely while maintaining governmental stability.
In a move to increase youth participation, the NCP proposes setting the voting age at 16 and the candidate eligibility age at 23, while also recognizing the right to information as a fundamental right.
Women's empowerment also features in the proposal, with plans for 100 parliamentary seats to be directly elected by women.
The platform also calls for referendums on major constitutional amendments, creating a mechanism that would block changes with just 35-40% opposition votes.
Parliamentary reforms
The NCP proposes that one person can be prime minister for two times in their lifetime that and no person can simultaneously be the head of a party, prime minister and the leader of parliament.
They also propose that legally mandated parliamentary standing committees shall be formed, with chairs of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), planning, public administration, and home ministry committees specifically required to be from opposition parties. And chairpersons of the parliamentary standing committees must come from the opposition.
Additionally, the reforms include provisions allowing for a vote of no confidence against the prime minister to be tabled, strengthening legislative oversight of the executive branch.
Electoral reforms and independent Election Commission
The NCP proposes appointing the chief election commissioner and other commissioners through the National Constitutional Council (NCC), granting the Election Commission authority to create its own administrative structure and budget, and introducing accountability measures including judicial review of commissioners by a Supreme Judicial Council in cases of serious misconduct, bias, corruption, abuse of power, or constitutional violations.
It also calls for the creation of an independent, non-partisan, and constitutionally established Delimitation Commission to redraw electoral boundaries, removing this power from the Election Commission.
Additionally, they propose classifying vote-buying with money as a criminal offence, enacting provisions allowing election results to be cancelled if fraud is proven even after gazette notification, and voting rights for expatriates through postal ballots, embassy-based voting, and a secure online voting system.
Legislative reforms
The reform package targets laws seen as repressive, calling for the repeal of the Special Powers Act 1974 and the amendment of preventive detention provisions under Article 33(3) of the constitution.
Under the proposed changes, detainees would need to be informed of the reasons for arrest, granted access to legal representation, and presented before courts within 24 hours of detention.
These proposals represent the most comprehensive constitutional reform agenda put forward in Bangladesh in recent years, the NCP says, with the party emphasizing that they aim to dismantle structures identified as promoting authoritarian tendencies in the current system.
The party states that their approach would help restore public trust in democratic governance, which they suggest has been eroded.
According to the NCP, these comprehensive reforms aim to address long-standing governance issues and improve public service delivery across Bangladesh, potentially setting the stage for significant political discourse in the coming months.
Judicial independence
For judicial independence, the NCP proposes establishing a dedicated administrative secretariat for the judiciary, forming a Supreme Judicial Council, and implementing a seniority-based appointment system for the chief justice.
The plan calls for creating a Judicial Commission and introducing merit-based examinations for judge appointments, developing an impartial evaluation system for promotions to the Appellate Division, and establishing permanent High Court benches in divisional cities across the country.
Anti-corruption measures
On anti-corruption measures, the NCP calls for significant strengthening of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), including recognition of the ACC as a constitutional institution and granting it independence to file cases against government and judicial officials.
The platform specifically advocates abolishing Section 32(a) of the current law that requires prior government permission before investigating officials, providing full authority to directly investigate, file cases, and arrest government and judicial officials suspected of corruption.
Local government reforms
For local governance reforms, the NCP emphasizes eliminating party-symbol-based elections at the local level and implementing necessary constitutional amendments to establish true local government rather than merely local administration.
It also proposes introducing a "right to recall" provision for elected local representatives.
Civil service reforms
The civil service reform proposals include enacting a Citizen Service Guarantee Act and strengthening existing Citizen Charters with legal backing.
The NCP suggests establishing an independent statutory Citizen Service and Grievance Redressal Commission as an administrative ombudsman and directly linking service delivery to the performance evaluation of civil servants.
The party recommends creating provisions to deduct "demerit points" from the Annual Confidential Reports of officials who deliberately deny services or are proven to harass citizens.
Additionally, it proposes forming a new Administrative Development and Reform Division under the Cabinet Division by combining existing units, creating a task force to modernize and harmonize laws and regulations, and simplifying service delivery processes.
The proposals also include ensuring legal and institutional protection for government employees against political pressure and setting reasonable timeframes for service delivery for each government employee based on their workload.
