Speaker, deputy speaker quit BNP posts to maintain neutrality

Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed and Deputy Speaker Kayser Kamal today (12 March) voluntarily resigned from all posts in the BNP to ensure neutrality in conducting parliamentary proceedings.

They sent their resignation letters to BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman after being elected speaker and deputy speaker at the first sitting of the 13th Parliament.

In his resignation letter, seen by The Business Standard, the speaker said he stepped down from the BNP Standing Committee and all other party positions to perform his duties in parliament in an impartial manner.

Deputy Speaker Kayser Kamal also said in his resignation letter that he resigned from the post of the party's legal affairs secretary and all other party positions to carry out his responsibilities neutrally.

In his first session as speaker, Hafiz said, "The Jatiya Sangsad will become the centre of political and administrative activities."

At that time, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman told the speaker, "From today, you no longer belong to any party. You are now the speaker of this parliament."

Later, Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Shafiqur Rahman said, "Today's parliament stands on the blood of '24. In this country, parliament and parliamentary politics have rarely been effective. Most of the time, this parliament functioned as a dummy parliament."

He added, "Many of those who served as guardians here failed to ensure justice. You [Hafiz] have already announced your resignation from the BNP. Now you belong to everyone. We believe there will be no difference between the ruling party and the opposition for you."

At the start of the maiden sitting of the newly formed parliament, lawmakers elected Hafiz Uddin, a six-time MP and Liberation War Affairs Minister in the new cabinet, as speaker of the 13th Parliament. They later elected first-time MP Kayser Kamal as deputy speaker.

After the election, the first sitting of the session went into a 30-minute break so the newly elected Speaker and Deputy Speaker could take their oath of office from President Mohammed Shahabuddin.

Earlier, the maiden sitting of the 13th Parliament began at 11:05am with the Speaker's chair vacant, as the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the 12th Parliament are currently unavailable.