Wednesday, 27 August, 2025
The National Consensus Commission (NCC) is facing significant challenges in forging agreement on three critical constitutional reform issues: the appointment of the chief of the election-time caretaker government, the formation of the proposed Upper House, and the electoral system for 100 reserved seats for women.
Although the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami have submitted broadly similar proposals—particularly regarding the selection process of the caretaker government’s chief—the NCC remains deadlocked, primarily due to dissenting views from other parties including the National Citizen Party (NCP).
The Commission aims to build consensus among political parties on 19 key constitutional reform issues by July 31, with the goal of drafting a comprehensive "reform charter." However, progress in the second round of dialogues has slowed due to disagreements over the three aforementioned issues.
While political parties broadly support the reintroduction of the caretaker government system—including its duration and responsibilities—contention remains over the process for selecting the Chief Adviser.
BNP had originally proposed five options for selecting the Chief Adviser, and Jamaat submitted three. Both parties recently submitted revised proposals that are now largely aligned.
In its latest submission on Monday, BNP proposed a four-member search committee comprising the Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition, Speaker, and Deputy Speaker (from the opposition). This committee would select the Chief Adviser based on consensus from a shortlist of ten names—five nominated by the ruling party and five by the opposition. If consensus is not reached, BNP suggested defaulting to the selection method outlined in the now-repealed 13th Amendment of the Constitution, excluding the controversial provision that allowed the President to head the caretaker government as a last resort.
Jamaat, in its revised proposal, recommended a five-member search committee. In addition to the four members proposed by BNP, it would include a representative from the third-largest party in Parliament. Jamaat suggested a nomination process with three candidates from each of the two major parties, two from the third-largest party, and one from other parties or independents. Like BNP, Jamaat also advocated for a fallback to the 13th Amendment process—excluding the President’s role—if consensus cannot be achieved.
Both parties agree that the Chief Adviser must be selected through consensus within the search committee.
BNP Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed, addressing a press briefing last Tuesday, signaled flexibility by expressing openness to expanding the committee to five members to include the third-largest party.
However, other parties, including the NCP, oppose any return to the 13th Amendment procedure, citing past controversies. Instead, they support a ranked-choice voting system within the search committee to select a neutral Chief Adviser.
Jamaat Nayeb-e-Ameer Dr. Syed Abdullah Muhammad Taher stressed the need for consensus-based selection, warning against mechanisms that may breed distrust. "We don’t want a process that creates political suspicion. We must find an acceptable solution through dialogue," he said.
To break the impasse, the NCC has tabled a revised proposal closely mirroring Jamaat’s structure. It suggests a five-member search committee and asks every political party and independent MP to submit one eligible name. If initial consensus fails, each of the two main parties would nominate three names and the third-largest party two.
Under this plan:
The ruling party would pick one name from both the opposition and the third-largest party’s lists.
The opposition would do the same.
The third-largest party would choose one name from the lists of both major parties.
If a consensus candidate emerges from this process, that person would be appointed as Chief Adviser. Otherwise, a ranked-choice voting system would be used.
NCC member Prof. Ali Riaz told reporters on Tuesday that many parties oppose involving the judiciary—especially retired Chief Justices—and instead favor the ranked-choice approach. "We are somewhat stuck on how the search committee should resolve deadlocks," he said, urging parties to reconsider their positions and submit revised proposals.
There is broader agreement among parties, including BNP, Jamaat, and NCP, on establishing a bicameral legislature consisting of a 400-seat Lower House and a 100-seat Upper House. They also support doubling the number of reserved seats for women in the Lower House from 50 to 100.
However, disagreement persists over how these seats should be filled.
Jamaat advocates for electing both Upper House members and reserved women’s seats through proportional representation (PR) based on vote share. BNP, on the other hand, proposes a PR system based on the number of MPs or Lower House members, rather than total vote share.
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The National Consensus Commission (NCC) is facing significant challenges in forging agreement on three critical constitutional reform issues: the appointment of the chief of the election-time caretaker government, the formation of the proposed Upper House, and the electoral system for 100 reserved seats for women.
Although the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami have submitted broadly similar proposals—particularly regarding the selection process of the caretaker government’s chief—the NCC remains deadlocked, primarily due to dissenting views from other parties including the National Citizen Party (NCP).
The Commission aims to build consensus among political parties on 19 key constitutional reform issues by July 31, with the goal of drafting a comprehensive "reform charter." However, progress in the second round of dialogues has slowed due to disagreements over the three aforementioned issues.
While political parties broadly support the reintroduction of the caretaker government system—including its duration and responsibilities—contention remains over the process for selecting the Chief Adviser.
BNP had originally proposed five options for selecting the Chief Adviser, and Jamaat submitted three. Both parties recently submitted revised proposals that are now largely aligned.
In its latest submission on Monday, BNP proposed a four-member search committee comprising the Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition, Speaker, and Deputy Speaker (from the opposition). This committee would select the Chief Adviser based on consensus from a shortlist of ten names—five nominated by the ruling party and five by the opposition. If consensus is not reached, BNP suggested defaulting to the selection method outlined in the now-repealed 13th Amendment of the Constitution, excluding the controversial provision that allowed the President to head the caretaker government as a last resort.
Jamaat, in its revised proposal, recommended a five-member search committee. In addition to the four members proposed by BNP, it would include a representative from the third-largest party in Parliament. Jamaat suggested a nomination process with three candidates from each of the two major parties, two from the third-largest party, and one from other parties or independents. Like BNP, Jamaat also advocated for a fallback to the 13th Amendment process—excluding the President’s role—if consensus cannot be achieved.
Both parties agree that the Chief Adviser must be selected through consensus within the search committee.
BNP Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed, addressing a press briefing last Tuesday, signaled flexibility by expressing openness to expanding the committee to five members to include the third-largest party.
However, other parties, including the NCP, oppose any return to the 13th Amendment procedure, citing past controversies. Instead, they support a ranked-choice voting system within the search committee to select a neutral Chief Adviser.
Jamaat Nayeb-e-Ameer Dr. Syed Abdullah Muhammad Taher stressed the need for consensus-based selection, warning against mechanisms that may breed distrust. "We don’t want a process that creates political suspicion. We must find an acceptable solution through dialogue," he said.
To break the impasse, the NCC has tabled a revised proposal closely mirroring Jamaat’s structure. It suggests a five-member search committee and asks every political party and independent MP to submit one eligible name. If initial consensus fails, each of the two main parties would nominate three names and the third-largest party two.
Under this plan:
The ruling party would pick one name from both the opposition and the third-largest party’s lists.
The opposition would do the same.
The third-largest party would choose one name from the lists of both major parties.
If a consensus candidate emerges from this process, that person would be appointed as Chief Adviser. Otherwise, a ranked-choice voting system would be used.
NCC member Prof. Ali Riaz told reporters on Tuesday that many parties oppose involving the judiciary—especially retired Chief Justices—and instead favor the ranked-choice approach. "We are somewhat stuck on how the search committee should resolve deadlocks," he said, urging parties to reconsider their positions and submit revised proposals.
There is broader agreement among parties, including BNP, Jamaat, and NCP, on establishing a bicameral legislature consisting of a 400-seat Lower House and a 100-seat Upper House. They also support doubling the number of reserved seats for women in the Lower House from 50 to 100.
However, disagreement persists over how these seats should be filled.
Jamaat advocates for electing both Upper House members and reserved women’s seats through proportional representation (PR) based on vote share. BNP, on the other hand, proposes a PR system based on the number of MPs or Lower House members, rather than total vote share.
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