Jamaat calls for bicameral legislature with 5-year term

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami has proposed the establishment of a bicameral parliament with a five-year tenure for each term, said the party’s Nayeb-e-Ameer Syed Abdullah Muhammad Taher on Saturday.

Speaking at a press briefing during the lunch break of discussions with the National Consensus Commission at the LD Hall of the Jatiya Sangsad Complex, Taher confirmed, “We have agreed on the matter of a bicameral parliament.”

He noted that although there were proposals during the talks to reduce the tenure of both Parliament and the Presidency to four years, Jamaat opposed such a move. “We made it clear that reducing the tenure would not be appropriate. The term should remain at five years,” he said.

A ten-member Jamaat delegation, led by Syed Abdullah Muhammad Taher, participated in the discussions, which began at 10:30am. Vice Chairman of the National Consensus Commission Professor Ali Riaz presided over the meeting.

Among others present were commission members Safar Raj Hossain, Justice Emdadul Haque, Dr Badiul Alam Majumdar, and Dr Iftekharuzzaman. The session was moderated by Chief Adviser’s Special Assistant Monir Haider.

The Jamaat delegation included Secretary General Professor Mia Golam Porwar, Assistant Secretaries General Rafiqul Islam Khan, AHM Hamidur Rahman Azad, and Ehsanul Mahbub Jubair, as well as Publicity and Media Affairs Secretary Matiur Rahman Akand, Dhaka South City Unit Ameer Nurul Islam Bulbul, and Shishir Monir.

The National Consensus Commission launched its dialogue series with political parties on March 20, aiming to build a nationwide agreement on reform measures initiated by the interim government.

So far, the commission has engaged in discussions with 16 political parties, including the BNP and the National Citizen Party (NCP).

Led by Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus, the commission is working to forge a unified position on key reforms critical for the country’s political future.