Major political parties, opposed to one another in field politics, wanted Article 70 of the constitution reformed but restricting lawmakers from voting against party decisions on money bill and no-confidence motion.
The parties expressed their opinion separately to the National Consensus Commission during their state reforms-based dialogues with the NCC.
According to Article 70 of the existing constitution, a party-nominated elected parliamentarian shall vacate his or her seat if he or she either resigns from that party or votes in parliament against that party.
The Constitution Reform Commission, however, proposed a bicameral parliament and recommended reforming Article 70 to give the members of the lower house full authority to vote, except for money bills, against his or her party.
Parliamentarians need to vote on various issues including money bills, no-confidence motion, passing legislation, resolutions for removal of the speaker or deputy speaker, amendments to the constitution, and election of the president.
The parties that want to restrict lawmakers from voting against party decisions on money bills and no-confidence motions include the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, the newly-floated National Citizen Party, the Amar Bangladesh Party, the Communist Party of Bangladesh, the Nagarik Oikya, the Socialist Party of Bangladesh and the Khelafat Majlish party.聽
鈥極ption for casting no-confidence vote will possibly distabilise the government,鈥� said BNP standing committee member Salahuddin Ahmed.
The vote of no-confidence leads to the resignation of the government.
Besides money bills and confidence votes, the BNP recommended voting restrictions against bills on constitutional amendment and national security issues.聽聽聽
Jahangirnagar University鈥檚 Department of Government and Politics teacher Professor KM Mahiuddin said that restriction on casting no-confidence votes would not bring any significant change unless practicing democracy within the party.
鈥楻eform in Article 70, even addressing the political parties鈥� concerns, will make a scope for the parliamentarians to practice freedom of thought. But, this does not guarantee that they will be able to stand against 鈥榰nfair鈥� decisions, if any, of their party.鈥櫬犅�
He said that existing Article 70 only restricted the parliamentarians from voting against party but did not prohibit debate on any bill.
鈥楤ut they don鈥檛 do it to show loyalty to their party chief.鈥� Mahiuddin said.
He recommended that parliamentarians should have the right to debate on constitutional amendment. 鈥極therwise, reform of Article 70 would not bring any significant change,鈥� he said.聽聽
For years, it was observed that no parliament members dared to criticise his or her party policy for fear of losing the party nomination.
Previously in many times, especially during the 16-year rule of the Awami League regime, outspoken politicians and political thinkers often raised the urgency of reforming Article 70.
According to them, this article turned the government into an elected dictator and the rule of law into the rule of a single party.
Earlier, 28 political parties submitted written opinions to the Constitution Reform Commission before drafting the final reform proposals on the constitution.
Among them, seven political parties including the Bangladesh Biplobi Communist League and the Ganatantrik Biplobi Party, demanded repealing Article 70. The two parties sat with the consensus commission recently and discussed key reform proposals.
Iterating the demand, Bangladesh Biplobi Communist League general secretary Iqbal Kabir Jahid, said on Wednesday, 鈥楾his particular article undermines parliamentary democracy and discourages a parliamentarian of self-judgement.鈥�
The leaders of the National Citizen Party, formed mainly by the organisers of the student-mass uprising that ousted the Sheikh Hasina-led authoritarian Awami League regime on August 5, 2024, echoed the other major political parties including the BNP and Jamaat, recommending that the reformed Article 70 should restrict party-nominated parliamentarians from standing against the party during confidence votes and money bills.
鈥楩or the stability of both parliament and the government, we have proposed such a reform,鈥� NCP convener Nahid Islam said on April 19.
