New MPs take oath in Bangladesh

Lawmakers of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party were sworn in after winning 209 seats in Bangladesh’s general elections. Jamaat-e-Islami emerged as the main opposition, while Awami League was barred from contesting the polls

Dhaka: The newly elected Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) lawmakers were sworn in on Tuesday, six days after the crucial general elections in the country.

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has bagged 209 out of 297 seats, while right-wing Jamaat-e-Islami secured 68 seats in the 13th Parliamentary elections. Deposed premier Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League was barred from contesting polls.

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Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasirudin administered the oath of office of the lawmakers inside the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban as a constitutional alternative in the absence of outgoing parliamentary Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chowdhury, who resigned earlier.

In the changed political scenario, Deputy Speaker Shamsul Haque, who was supposed to conduct the oath in speaker’s absence, was sent to jail, after a student-led violent street protest dubbed ‘July Uprising’ toppled deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League government.

Awami League was disqualified for the February 12 polls when BNP’s once longtime ally and now hardened rival, Jamaat-e-Islami, emerged as the main opposition.

According to the official schedule, President Mohammad Shahabuddin would administer the oath of office of the cabinet, installing BNP to power in the afternoon after the majority party members are set to elect their leader.

Bangladesh Constitution dictates that the President invite the majority party leader to form the government and administer the cabinet’s oath, while BNP said the cabinet would be led by party Chairman Tarique Rahman as the next Bangladesh Prime Minister.

BNP earlier said the party chairman would be the new prime minister of the country.

The party, however, unlike Jamaat, declined to take a second oath as members of the “Constitution Reform Council” to endorse the referendum staged simultaneously with the general election.

The second oath is aimed at obligating MPs to implement the much drummed up “July Charter” demanding the Constitution be massively rewritten, while the 84-point complex proposal was laid out in the referendum in a cognised but nearly esoteric form for voting.

The election commission reported that over 60 percent voters cast a “yes” vote in the referendum.   “We have not been elected as members of the Constitution Reform Council; no provision of the council is yet to be incorporated in the Constitution,” BNP’s policy-making standing committee member and newly elected member Salahuddin Ahmed told the BNP MPs shortly before the event as the party members gathered for taking the oath.

In the presence of BNP chairperson Tarique Rahman, he added, “None of us (BNP) members will take the second oath”.