Dhaka – Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and its allies initially said they would not take their oaths as lawmakers if the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) skipped the oath for the Constitution Reforms Council. However, by noon on Tuesday, they had proceeded to be sworn in as both Members of Parliament and members of the Reform Council.
This decision stood in contrast to the BNP lawmakers, who hold an overwhelming two-thirds parliamentary majority. The BNP had skipped the oath for the Constitution Reforms Council, a requirement prescribed by the interim administration following a referendum, citing a lack of support in the existing constitutional provisions.
The victorious candidates of the National Citizen Party (NCP, formed by students who spearheaded the 2024 uprising and an ally of Jamaat, also took their oaths as MPs after an initial denial.
The lawmakers were sworn in first to their parliamentary offices and then as members of the Constitution Reforms Council. The oaths were administered by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM Nasir Uddin on Tuesday afternoon.
For the first time in the country’s history, a CEC administered the oath to elected parliamentary candidates in the absence of a Speaker. The Speaker of Parliament resigned following the 2024 uprising that ousted former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, and the Deputy Speaker was detained.
According to the constitution, in the absence of both a Speaker and a Deputy Speaker, the CEC has been entrusted with the responsibility of administering the oath to the new Members of Parliament.
Earlier in the morning, the CEC administered the oath to the winning party members of the BNP, including its Chairman, Tarique Rahman
