The fate of forming a Constitutional Reform Council may be decided through discussions in parliament, Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said on Saturday.
“The discussion may take place on the floor of the House,” said Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed while responding to a question from reporters after a meeting of the Business Advisory Committee.
He said the issue was not discussed during the committee meeting but could be raised during the parliamentary session.
Saturday’s meeting marked the first sitting of the Business Advisory Committee, where members discussed the duration of the first session of parliament, debate agendas, proposed bills and time allocation for discussion on the President’s address.
According to the minister, the House will adjourn on March 15 and remain prorogued from March 16 to March 28 before resuming on 29 March.
He said the parliamentary session is expected to continue throughout April.
Regarding the ordinances issued during the tenure of the interim government, Salahuddin Ahmed said a special parliamentary committee was formed on Thursday to review them.
He said such committees are traditionally formed before the constitution of ministry-related standing committees.
The Law Minister will formally place the matter in parliament, after which the ordinances will be sent to the special committee for scrutiny and review before being presented to the House in the form of reports, he said.
Law Minister Asaduzzaman said the debate over the Constitutional Reform Council would take place in parliament.
“We will present our position in parliament as it is the centre of all discussions,” said Law Minister Asaduzzaman.
Meanwhile, Opposition Chief Whip Nahid Islam said the opposition would present its stance during the debate on the President’s address.
“We will explain why we walked out and why we felt it was inappropriate for the President to deliver that speech, but we will not offer thanks to the President,” said Opposition Chief Whip Nahid Islam.
He added that the opposition leader would raise the issue of forming a Constitutional Reform Council in parliament at an appropriate time.
Nahid Islam also said the referendum verdict in favour of constitutional reform created expectations that a separate constitutional reform session would be convened alongside the parliamentary session.
“The government side earlier said the matter would be discussed in parliament, and we want to hear the government’s position there before deciding our course of action,” he said.
The opposition, he added, would like to see the current parliament transformed into a Constitutional Reform Council as soon as possible.
