13th Parliament set to convene mid-March: Home minister

The first session of the 13th Parliament is expected to be convened on 12 March, or a few days earlier, Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said today (21 February).

In a post on his verified Facebook page, he added that the speaker and deputy speaker will be elected during this session.

"The session will also present interim government ordinances and condolence motions," Salahuddin noted.

According to the Constitution, the president must summon the inaugural session of a newly elected parliament within 30 days of gazetting the election results, based on written advice from the prime minister.

National elections and a referendum were held on 12 February, with results officially gazetted the next day. Newly elected MPs took their oaths on 13 February, making the first session mandatory before 14 March.

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has been appointed parliamentary leader, and his government has already begun functioning, though the party is yet to elect a speaker, deputy leader, or chief whip.

Opposition appointments include Shafiqur Rahman of Jamaat-e-Islami as leader, Syed Abdullah Md Taher as deputy leader, and Nahid Islam of the NCP as chief whip.

The deputy speaker is expected to come from the opposition, in line with the July National Charter.

As the constitutional procedure goes, the president delivers the opening speech after cabinet approval, followed by debate.

In the absence of explicit rules on presiding, historical precedent from 1973 allows a senior member to chair the session until the speaker and deputy speaker are formally elected.

Of 300 parliamentary seats, voting occurred in 299. Two Chattogram seats remain undecided due to court orders, and Sherpur-3 was postponed following a candidate's death.

Among the remaining 297 seats, the BNP secured 209, its allies three, Jamaat 68, NCP six, Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis three, Islami Andolan one, and independents seven.