Dhaka [Bangladesh], October 16 (ANI): The National Citizen Party (NCP), a new student-led political party in Bangladesh, announced that it will not sign the “July National Charter 2025,” a document outlining post-uprising reform agendas. The interim government has made extensive preparations for political parties to sign the charter on Friday.
“We will not participate in a drama to sign the July charter,” said Nahid Islam, Convenor of NCP, at a news conference on Thursday. The group, formed by the youth who led the movement to remove Sheikh Hasina, decided against signing the charter due to the absence of a clear roadmap for its implementation.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Bangladesh interim government confirmed that it had finalized the “July National Charter 2025,” a document created through consensus among political parties to guide post-uprising reforms. The signing ceremony is scheduled for Friday, October 17, at the south plaza of the Bangladesh Parliament building in Dhaka. Interim government chief Muhammad Yunus is expected to attend the event.
During a meeting with political leaders on Wednesday, Yunus expressed optimism that the signing of the charter would be a moment of national celebration. “You have made possible what once seemed impossible. We will join the ceremony on Friday in a festive mood and sign it. This is our hope, and we will spread it to the whole nation,” he said, reaffirming that the next national election will be held in February. However, the charter did not include any implementation roadmap.
In July 2024, a student-led movement led to the ouster of then-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on August 5 that year. Sheikh Hasina fled to India, and an interim government was formed under Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus. Under his leadership, the National Consensus Commission was established to draft reform proposals based on the principles of the July Movement. The commission held months of discussions with parties involved in the anti-Hasina movement, including BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami, and NCP.
However, the interim government excluded Sheikh Hasina’s Bangladesh Awami League and its coalition partners, including the Jatiya Party of late military ruler General Ershad, from the charter’s formulation process. The final version of the July Charter was published in the media and distributed to political parties ahead of the signing ceremony.
Political parties have proposed various structural, legal, and institutional reforms to the governance system, including changes to the constitution, the electoral process, the judiciary, public administration, the police, and anti-corruption mechanisms.
According to bdnews24.com, the Consensus Commission finalized 84 points across 17 areas of state reform based on full agreement among participating parties and alliances. However, 67 additional points drew dissent from some parties, which submitted formal notes of objection.
The 84 agreed points were categorized into 47 requiring constitutional amendments and 37 to be implemented through laws, ordinances, rules, or executive orders. The 40-page charter outlines the background of the reform initiative, details of the commission’s activities, the 84 reform points, commitments from political parties, and spaces for signatures. Some issues and implementation methods remain unresolved, the report added.
Four leftist political parties — the Communist Party of Bangladesh, Bangladesher Samajtantrik Dal (Basod), Bangladesh JSD, and Bangladesher Samajtantrik Dal (Marxist) — also announced that they would not sign the July National Charter, citing the omission of the four basic principles of the constitution, the Daily Star reported.
Another political party, Gonoforum, warned that it would not sign the charter if the telegram of the Declaration of Independence issued by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on March 26, 1971, and the Proclamation of Independence of the Mujibnagar Government on April 10, 1971, were missing from the Sixth and Seventh Schedules of the constitution, respectively, the Daily Star reported.
About The Author
