Dhaka: National Consensus Commission Vice-Chairman Professor Ali Riaz announced that the commission is eager to swiftly resolve issues that have shown progress during discussions with political parties. “There is no difference of opinion between the commission and the parties in terms of their goals…Everyone has the same objective,” stated Prof Ali Riaz at the commencement of the 11th day of the second phase of talks at the Foreign Service Academy.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, Prof Ali Riaz expressed optimism that the July Charter will be prepared within the month with the continued cooperation of all involved parties. During the meeting, he noted that significant consensus was achieved on various issues over the two-month discussions in the first phase, aiding in drafting the national charter. He emphasized the need for agreement on fundamental issues of state reform to prevent the establishment of fascist regimes in the future.
The commission resumed talks with political parties following a three-day break, aiming to reach consensus on recommendations from reform commissions established by the interim government and to formulate the ‘July Charter’. Today’s meeting at the Foreign Service Academy, which began at 10:30 am, marks the eleventh day of the second phase.
According to commission sources, today’s agenda includes pivotal issues such as the caretaker government, the appointment of the Chief Justice, and the declaration of state emergencies. The meeting, presided over by Prof Ali Riaz, was attended by Commission members Justice Emdadul Haque, Dr Badiul Alam Majumder, Dr Md Ayub Mia, Dr Iftekharuzzaman, Safar Raj Hossain, and Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser Monir Haider.
Representatives from 30 political parties, including Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, Jatiya Nagorik Party (NCP), Gono Odhikar Parishad, Gana Sanghati, Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB), Biplobi Workers Party, and Amar Bangladesh (AB) Party, are participating in the discussions.
Earlier meetings addressed various topics with political parties, such as the Prime Minister’s term, the presidential election system, state governance principles, and forming an independent committee to delineate parliamentary constituency boundaries. The program is being broadcast live on Bangladesh Television.