Constitution Reform Commission chairman Ali Riaz on Sunday said that the commission would not engage directly with the political parties, but request written opinion and specific proposals from them.
To encourage public involvement, he announced that a dedicated website would be launched on Tuesday allowing citizens to submit their suggestions.
At a briefing of the commission at the LD Hall of the parliament Ali Riaz also said that they would start discussions with other stakeholders from next week.
He said that the commission would seek insights from a broad spectrum of stakeholders, including legal experts, civil society leaders, youth activists and cultural representatives.
鈥榃e will also hold discussions with representatives from the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement and the National Citizens Committee,鈥� he said.
Riaz also said that individuals, organisations, institutions or political parties who were actively involved in the killings during the July-August student-people uprising would not be included in the constitutional reform process.
The commission is charged with reviewing, amending and potentially rewriting the current constitution to better reflect public aspirations, he said.
Outlining primary objectives for reforms, Ali Riaz also said, 鈥楾he commission will consider equality, human dignity, social justice and the foundational goals of the War of Independence, aiming to establish a discrimination-free democratic state.鈥�
The objectives of the commission include establishing a participatory democracy, balancing the powers of state organs, decentralising authority, ensuring meaningful political involvement, preventing the emergence of authoritarian regimes and safeguarding the independence of the key institutions.
Chief adviser鈥檚 special assistant Mahfuj Alam, also a member of the commission, said that constitutional questions emerged with the call for a new political settlement.
鈥榃hen the one-point demand was announced, it was mentioned that the old political settlement would be rejected in favour of a new one. It means a new constitution,鈥� said Mahfuj, adding, 鈥楬earing this, the people of the country were inspired to take to the streets.鈥�
Mahfuj emphasised that the commission鈥檚 recommendations should be implemented by the interim government.
He acknowledged the unique nature of the interim government, saying, 鈥楾his government may be unelected, but it represents the people under exceptional circumstances. In this scenario, terms like parliament, election and elected carry less weight.鈥�
Mahfuj also said that after the commission would submit its proposals to the government, political parties would be invited to discuss and contribute to the implementation process.