Khelafat Majlis wants reforms before polls through ordinance

Khelafat Majlis has called for essential reforms to be implemented within 10 months before the general elections through an ordinance based on the feedback from political parties.

Speaking after a meeting with the National Consensus Commission at the LD Hall of the National Parliament on Saturday morning, the party’s Secretary General Ahmad Abdul Quader outlined their stance.

“We have agreed on 140 out of 166 proposals made by the National Consensus Commission. We did not agree on 10 and partially agreed on 15,” he said.

“We believe necessary reforms can be carried out within 10 months. This should be done through an ordinance. The existing reforms should be completed before the election.”

Quader stressed the need for further discussions on state reforms. “Both sides have debated the dissenting issues. We tried, they tried. At a certain point, discussions reached a deadlock. More time will be needed.”

“The commission said they would consider some issues, and we said we would consider some as well. If all political parties reach a consensus on some strategic matters, we will not object.”

The current Constitution upholds nationalism, socialism, democracy, and secularism as state principles.

However, the Constitutional Reform Commission has recommended replacing them with “equality, human dignity, social justice, pluralism, and democracy”.

Khelafat Majlis sees no need for pluralism.

Quader said, “The Constitution must uphold faith in Almighty Allah. Pluralism must be removed. We have said that democracy is enough; they gave many arguments.”

“We said that if democracy and human dignity exist, there will be no divisions in society; pluralism is unnecessary.”

Previously, Ali Riaz, head of the Constitutional Reform Commission, told BBC Bangla: “Through pluralism, we aimed to include broader values beyond secularism, ensuring space for Dalits, third gender individuals, ethnic minorities, and religious minorities. We have spoken to people from all religions, castes, and communities.”

Khelafat Majlis does not believe a Constituent Assembly election is necessary to change the Constitution.

“Our proposal is that all 400 parliamentary seats should have direct elections for women candidates. We support a five-year parliamentary term. In the upper house (Senate), seats should be distributed based on 1 percent proportional votes,” Quader said.

“Constitutional amendments can be done through ordinances, and where necessary, the higher court’s opinion can be sought. We do not support a Constituent Assembly,” he added.

Regarding the president’s power to grant pardons, Quader said: “There should be a board for presidential pardons. No individual should have the right to grant pardons. We have agreed on the National Constitutional Council.”

Emphasising that no anti-Islamic law should be enacted, he said: “The Constitution must ensure that no explicitly anti-Islamic law is passed. This is necessary for social and religious stability. If anti-religious laws are enacted, social disorder follows.”

“The Awami League has always claimed before elections that no laws against the Quran and Sunnah would be enacted. They said this in the 1970s and in the last election. They always say this but do not practice it.”

When asked whether there were any discussions on banning the Awami League, Quader said: “Fascism and its collaborators have no place in the next election. They must be tried. If someone is found innocent after trial, they can participate.”

“At this moment, there is no opportunity. Like many others, we are also not in favour of rehabilitating the Awami League because they have never apologised for their killings.”

The meeting between Khelafat Majlis and the National Consensus Commission lasted two hours, with a six-member delegation from the party and a seven-member team from the commission.

Following the July-August 2024 mass uprising, the interim government led by Yunus formed 11 reform commissions to restructure the state.

Among them, six commissions on the constitution, electoral system, judiciary, public administration, Anti-Corruption Commission, and police reforms have already submitted their reports with recommendations.

The Consensus Commission had asked 38 political parties to provide feedback on the key recommendations by Mar 13.

However, half of them are yet to respond.

The National Consensus Commission began discussions with political parties on Thursday to create national consensus on reforms.