Wednesday, 16 July, 2025
National Consensus Commission Vice Chairman Professor Ali Riaz on Sunday emphasised the need for a bicameral parliamentary system to ensure proper representation of Bangladesh’s diverse society.
Speaking to journalists at the Foreign Service Academy’s Doel Hall in Dhaka after the 13th day of the second-phase dialogue between the commission and political parties, Professor Riaz said, “To adequately reflect the existing diversity in our society, we need a bicameral parliamentary system.” However, he acknowledged that no consensus has yet been reached on how the proposed upper house would be constituted.
He noted that the commission has already presented two proposals regarding the formation of the second chamber, and additional suggestions have emerged during ongoing discussions with political parties. “Further dialogue is essential to finalise a suitable mechanism,” he added.
Addressing another key issue, Professor Riaz said there is broad agreement on reserving 100 seats for women in the National Parliament. However, questions remain over how those seats would be filled. Currently, 50 seats are reserved for women based on proportional representation, and two new proposals are under discussion: one would double the quota using the existing system, while the other calls for direct elections to the reserved seats.
Since consensus on either proposal has not yet been reached, the commission has floated an alternative solution that would involve amending Article 65 of the Constitution to ensure women’s representation through a different mechanism. According to the new proposal, any political party nominating candidates in more than 25 constituencies must ensure that at least one-third of its candidates are women.
Professor Riaz said additional ideas have surfaced during the talks, and the commission intends to continue dialogue with political parties to further explore and refine the proposals.
Other commission members present at the briefing included Justice Md. Emdadul Haque, Dr. Iftekharuzzaman, Dr. Badiul Alam Majumdar, Safar Raj Hossain, and Dr. Md. Ayub Miah, along with Chief Adviser’s Special Assistant Monir Haider.
A total of 30 political parties participated in Sunday’s session, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party (NCP), Gono Odhikar Parishad, Gonosanghati Andolon, Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB), Biplobi Workers Party, and the Amar Bangladesh (AB) Party.
The commission is scheduled to resume talks tomorrow morning as it seeks to build consensus on the remaining unresolved issues.
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National Consensus Commission Vice Chairman Professor Ali Riaz on Sunday emphasised the need for a bicameral parliamentary system to ensure proper representation of Bangladesh’s diverse society.
Speaking to journalists at the Foreign Service Academy’s Doel Hall in Dhaka after the 13th day of the second-phase dialogue between the commission and political parties, Professor Riaz said, “To adequately reflect the existing diversity in our society, we need a bicameral parliamentary system.” However, he acknowledged that no consensus has yet been reached on how the proposed upper house would be constituted.
He noted that the commission has already presented two proposals regarding the formation of the second chamber, and additional suggestions have emerged during ongoing discussions with political parties. “Further dialogue is essential to finalise a suitable mechanism,” he added.
Addressing another key issue, Professor Riaz said there is broad agreement on reserving 100 seats for women in the National Parliament. However, questions remain over how those seats would be filled. Currently, 50 seats are reserved for women based on proportional representation, and two new proposals are under discussion: one would double the quota using the existing system, while the other calls for direct elections to the reserved seats.
Since consensus on either proposal has not yet been reached, the commission has floated an alternative solution that would involve amending Article 65 of the Constitution to ensure women’s representation through a different mechanism. According to the new proposal, any political party nominating candidates in more than 25 constituencies must ensure that at least one-third of its candidates are women.
Professor Riaz said additional ideas have surfaced during the talks, and the commission intends to continue dialogue with political parties to further explore and refine the proposals.
Other commission members present at the briefing included Justice Md. Emdadul Haque, Dr. Iftekharuzzaman, Dr. Badiul Alam Majumdar, Safar Raj Hossain, and Dr. Md. Ayub Miah, along with Chief Adviser’s Special Assistant Monir Haider.
A total of 30 political parties participated in Sunday’s session, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party (NCP), Gono Odhikar Parishad, Gonosanghati Andolon, Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB), Biplobi Workers Party, and the Amar Bangladesh (AB) Party.
The commission is scheduled to resume talks tomorrow morning as it seeks to build consensus on the remaining unresolved issues.
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