Govt MPs violated July Charter by refusing Reform Council oath: Shishir Monir

Jamaat politician and lawyer Mohammad Shishir Monir today (16 July) alleged that ruling party lawmakers violated the July National Charter (Constitutional Reform) Implementation Order, 2025 by refusing to take the oath as members of the Constitutional Reform Council following the national election.

Speaking at a press conference at the Supreme Court's Shaheed Shafiur Rahman Auditorium, Monir claimed that lawmakers elected from the opposition alliance took the required dual oath – as members of parliament and the Constitutional Reform Council – after the 13th parliamentary election on 17 February, while government party MPs declined to take the second oath.

He said the refusal contravened the implementation order issued after the constitutional reform referendum.

The press conference, titled "Constitution Amendment Committee, Referendum, July Charter and the Verdict on the Fifteenth Amendment: Current Reality and the Future of Democracy," was organised by the Bangladesh Lawyers Council, a lawyers' body affiliated with Jamaat-e-Islami.

Citing the amended official results of the 12 February referendum, Monir said voter turnout was 60.26%. Under Article 7 of the implementation order, he said, approval of the referendum required the formation of a Constitutional Reform Council comprising newly elected MPs, which would have 180 working days from its first sitting to complete constitutional reforms in line with the July National Charter.

Monir said the implementation order, issued by the president on 13 November 2025, outlined a roadmap for constitutional reform, including restoring the caretaker government system, reintroducing referendums on constitutional amendments and establishing a bicameral parliament with a 100-member upper house.

He also welcomed the Appellate Division's recent verdict upholding the High Court's decision restoring the caretaker government system and constitutional referendums while striking down Articles 7A and 7B of the Constitution. The ruling, he said, had cleared the way for implementing the July National Charter and completing constitutional reforms.

Monir also criticised the 15th constitutional amendment, alleging that it entrenched authoritarian rule by abolishing the caretaker government system and referendums, centralising power and weakening judicial independence, the rule of law and human rights. 

He further claimed that the elections of 2014, 2018 and 2024 contributed to public discontent that culminated in the July 2024 mass uprising.