Rumin Farhana Slams July Charter Implementation: Cites Three Major Objections
Barrister Rumin Farhana, Assistant International Affairs Secretary of the BNP, stated that the party has strong objections to three aspects of the proposed implementation of the “July National Charter 2025.” She made these comments during a talk show on a private television channel.
The Three Major Objections
Barrister Farhana confirmed that the party’s Secretary General, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, has clarified two specific examples of the party’s objections regarding the original document and its reflection in the consensus commission’s recommendations:
1. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s Image (Article 4(a)): In the consensus commission, a proposal was made not to keep the image of the late Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in offices and courts (under Article 4(a) of the Constitution). This proposal was agreed upon by all political parties. However, this agreement is not reflected in the main Charter document.
2. Constitutional Schedules (Article 150): There was consensus among the parties to remove the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Schedules of Article 150 of the Constitution. Again, this consensus is not reflected in the main Charter.
Objection to Constitutional Reform Deadline
Barrister Farhana raised a third major objection concerning the timeline for constitutional reform:
• 270-Day Deadline: The BNP objects to the provision that the next Parliament, which is mandated to serve as the Constitutional Reform Council, must complete the constitutional reform within a mandatory 270-day timeframe.
• Automatic Inclusion: The provision that if the parties or the Parliament fail to complete the reform within 270 days, the proposed changes will be “automatically included” in the Constitution is strongly opposed.
Farhana stated: “No constitution has ever been reformed anywhere in the world, at any time, in this manner. You have to understand, you are talking about the Supreme Law. If any provision, law, notification, or even any article of the Constitution itself is contradictory to the core spirit of the Supreme Law, it will be considered void to the extent of the contradiction. When you talk about changing such a law, there is a procedure, and you must follow that procedure to amend the Constitution.”
Referendum Timing and Jamaat’s Strategy
Regarding the referendum, which the Election Commission (EC) says requires 1.5 months (meaning it cannot be held before December 17th) and an additional budget of 3,000 crore Taka, the BNP has disagreements.
Farhana suggested that some parties might be trying to delay the election by bringing up different issues at different times for their own benefit.
She specifically criticized Jamaat-e-Islami’s political strategy:
“Of all our political parties, no party has such good electoral preparation as Jamaat does, this far in advance… They have candidates in 300 seats. They campaign from Fajr [dawn] until sunrise, and then from Asr [late afternoon] until night. This is their strategy. They have been following this strategy for 10-12 months. This preparation, which is 100% ready in their own house, while pushing other parties to delay the election to gain an advantage, is not right.”
She concluded by asserting that considering the overall situation—whether from the perspective of the government, the economy, or law and order—Bangladesh cannot afford anything other than an elected government or an immediate election.
