Supreme Court Violating Constitution, Alleges BNP

Staff Correspondent | April 17, 2025

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed has claimed that establishing the Supreme Court Secretariat and appointing judges before constitutional amendments would constitute a violation of the constitution.

During a break in talks with the National Consensus Commission at Parliament’s LD Hall on Thursday, the senior BNP leader made these remarks. He informed that BNP has submitted detailed opinions regarding constitutional reforms, judiciary, administration and electoral matters.

“We submitted our hard copy today. Detailed discussions are ongoing – starting with constitutional reforms, then moving to judiciary and election issues. If discussions remain incomplete today, we’ll continue later. We want to demonstrate BNP’s seriousness about reforms,” Salahuddin said.

He criticized the yes/no format for collecting opinions, stating that judicial appointment ordinances would remain unconstitutional until Article 95 is amended. Similarly, establishing the Supreme Court Secretariat before amending Article 116 would raise constitutional questions. “Judicial violations of the constitution cannot be accepted,” he asserted.

Regarding the commission’s report, Salahuddin claimed misrepresentation, saying BNP had responded to 89 out of 150 detailed opinions, agreeing with or commenting on most others. He reiterated BNP’s demand for judicial independence through proper legal processes, noting they had submitted written opinions.

On electoral reforms, Salahuddin warned that implementing the commission’s proposals would undermine the Election Commission’s independence. “Many proposals require constitutional amendments,” he noted, adding that BNP was participating in the second phase of talks with positive intent.

He criticized the spreadsheet-based yes/no format as misleading, pointing out discrepancies between the commission’s 70-point spreadsheet and the original 131 proposals. “We’re discussing all aspects systematically – from the preamble to state principles. We’ll share progress details later,” he said.

The BNP leader revealed partial agreement with about 50 proposals and said they would continue logical discussions to reach consensus on fundamental amendments. “We’ll consider reasonable proposals for national welfare,” he added.

The meeting began at 10:30 AM with BNP’s delegation led by Salahuddin Ahmed, including Nazrul Islam Khan and Barrister Ruhul Quddus Kazal. The commission’s team was led by co-chair Ali Riaz along with several members.