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Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed
Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed stated that there is no scope to draft an entirely new constitution because Bangladesh already possesses an established constitutional framework, confirming that the Parliamentary Special Committee aims to prepare the draft of the 18th Constitutional Amendment by December 2026 to implement the July National Charter.
Speaking to journalists after presiding over the second meeting of the 13th Parliament's Special Committee on Constitutional Amendment at the Cabinet Room of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban on Sunday, the Home Minister addressed political demands regarding a replacement charter.
"There is no scope to move toward a new constitution because we already have one," Salahuddin Ahmed remarked. "A constitution is adopted through a Constituent Assembly when a new state is established or newly gained independence is achieved, followed by the formation of a National Assembly under that constitution. That is an extensive, long process."
The minister announced plans to hold weekly committee sessions to expedite consultations and table the committee’s final report in Parliament by the end of December. Once submitted, the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs will introduce the formal amendment bill for floor debate.
Of the 26 political parties that signed the July National Charter, representatives from 15 parties participated in Sunday's consultation directly. One party submitted written views, while another expressed verbal regrets due to sudden illness, bringing practical participation to 17 parties, the minister noted. Key opposition factions, including Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and the National Citizen Party (NCP), boycotted the session over preconditions and differing demands.
Dismissing allegations that the committee's proceedings are one-sided, the minister asserted: "It is not unilateral; it involves 17 perspectives. Our doors remain open to both registered and unregistered parties outside the Charter signatories if they submit written proposals to the committee."
The Home Minister stressed that the government remains pledged to execute the July Charter to the letter through constitutional consensus. He explained that party-specific electoral pledges endorsed by voters—such as realigning Bangladesh’s fiscal calendar to April–March to prevent monsoon-driven project disruptions and fiscal waste in the final quarter—would require constitutional revisions in two specific provisions. He concluded that future parliaments holding two-thirds majorities retain the sovereign authority to amend provisions according to evolving public needs.
