Referendum ordinance, 19 others left to lapse

A special parliamentary committee formed to review the 133 ordinances issued during the interim government's tenure has recommended against retaining 20 ordinances, including that for the July Charter referendum.

Of the 20 ordinances, four, including the Supreme Court Judge Appointment Ordinance and the Supreme Court Secretariat Ordinance, have been recommended to be repealed.

Two other ordinances are National Parliament Secretariat (Interim Special Provisions) Ordinance and Supreme Court Secretariat (Amendment) Ordinance, 2026.

For the remaining 16, it has been recommended that they be submitted to the parliament as new bills to allow for further legislative scrutiny, according to a report placed in the House by Committee Chairman and ruling BNP lawmaker Zainul Abedin today (2 April).

Parliament formed the committee composed of members of the treasury and opposition parties to review the 133 ordinances after they were presented in the first meeting of the 13th Sangshad on 12 March. 

Under Article 93 of the Constitution, an ordinance must be placed before parliament and approved within 30 days of its introduction; otherwise, it ceases to have effect. In this case, the 20 ordinances are set to lapse by 12 April if they are not approved.

Jamaat's note of dissent 

Among the 13 committee members, three Jamaat-e-Islami lawmakers gave a note of dissent regarding the repeal of two ordinances:  Supreme Court Judges Appointment Ordinance and the Supreme Court Secretariat Ordinance.

The report said that out of the 16 ordinances, the opposition party gave a note of dissent to 11.

The interim government had issued 133 ordinances between 8 August 2024 and 17 February 2026.

The committee recommended that 98 ordinances be tabled in parliament as bills, while 15 others be placed as amended bills through the respective ministries.

The ordinances include those related to revenue policy and management, VAT and supplementary duty amendments, customs and income tax amendments, civil aviation, travel agency regulation, human organ transplantation, microfinance banking, National Human Rights Commission, prevention and remedy of enforced disappearance, the Anti-Corruption Commission (amendment), the Right to Information (amendment) and the microfinance bank ordinance, among others.

The report also noted differences among the committee members over the Revenue Policy and Revenue Management Ordinance 2025.

The ruling party lawmakers proposed passing the National Freedom Fighters Council (Amendment) Ordinance 2025, while opposition members backed its passage with amendments.

Speaking to The Business Standard, a senior leader of the BNP said some ordinances, which have not yet been presented in the form of bills, will be reviewed and later introduced as bills, while others will remain pending.

"For the BNP, democracy and the July Charter are more important than a referendum," he added.

The BNP leader further said, "The party is committed to implementing the July Charter exactly as agreed upon and signed by political parties through consensus. BNP has pledged to the people to ensure the full implementation of this charter. At the same time, both the party and the prime minister are committed to institutionalising democracy."

Regarding the referendum, he said the BNP had initially proposed holding it after the national election.

"However, when the interim government took the initiative to organise the referendum before the election, the party agreed to hold it on the same day, considering that the election process should not be disrupted. The BNP is now focused on implementing the July Charter, and the referendum is no longer a priority," the leader said.