Constitution of Bangladesh
The Constitution of
Bangladesh is the supreme law of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. It was
adopted on November 4, 1972. The constitution establishes a unitary state and a
Westminster form of unicameral parliamentary democracy. It was originally handwritten
in Bangla. A handwritten copy of the Constitution with signature from the
constituent assembly members, is kept at the Attorney General's office in
Dhaka. At present Bangladesh's Constitution and some other laws are available
in English as well In Bangla. Following an Act of Parliament requiring all laws
to be enacted in Bangla in 1987, laws made in Parliament are drafted in Bangla.
[1]
The document's original
drafters, notably Kamal Hossain, have called for major reforms to bring it in
line with the 21st-century.[2]
Preamble
The preamble states the
fundamental principles of the Bangladeshi republic, although it is not
enforceable in a court of law.
Full
text
We, the people of
Bangladesh, having proclaimed our independence on the 26th day of March, 1971
and through a historic struggle for national liberation, established the
independent, sovereign People's Republic of Bangladesh;
Pledging that the high
ideals of nationalism, socialism, democracy and secularism, which inspired our
heroic people to dedicate themselves to, and our brave martyrs to sacrifice
their lives in, the national liberation struggle, shall be the fundamental principles
of the Constitution;
Further pledging that
it shall be a fundamental aim of the State to realize through the democratic
process a socialist society, free from exploitation a society in which the rule
of law, fundamental human rights and freedom, equality and justice, political,
economic and social, will be secured for all citizens;
Affirming that it is
our sacred duty to safeguard, protect and defend this Constitution and to
maintain its supremacy as the embodiment of the will of the people of
Bangladesh so that we may prosper in freedom and may make our full contribution
towards international peace and co-operation in keeping with the progressive
aspirations of mankind;
In our Constituent
Assembly, this eighteenth day of Kartick, 1379 B.S., corresponding to the
fourth day of November, 1972 A.D., do hereby adopt, enact and give to ourselves
this Constitution.
Organs
of the state
As per the constitution
of the republic it comprises three basic organs:
1. Legislative Branch
2. Executive Branch
3. Judicial Branch
Parts
The constitution of
Bangladesh is divided into 11 parts, which are further subdivided into 153
articles.[3] In addition, there are 7 schedules.
Part
I: The Republic
This section defines
the nature of the country, its state religion and other national issues.
According to it, Peoples Republic of Bangladesh is a unitary republic
consisting of the territories of the former East Pakistan and also included
territories (some enclaves exchanged with India). Even though the 1972
constitution clearly mentions secularism as one of its four pillars, military
autocrat General H.M Ershad declared Islam as a state religion in the late
1980s. The Supreme Court, in 2010, upheld the secular nature of the
constitution, declaring Ershad's promulgation unconstitutional. The state
language is Bengali and the national anthem is the first ten lines of the song
Amar Sonar Bangla. The national flag is a red circle on a green background. The
national emblem is the national flower shapla (nympoea-nouchali) resting on
water, having on each side and ear of paddy and being surmounted by three
connected leaves of jute with two stars on each side of the leaves. This
section also mandates that the portrait of prime minister must be displayed in
all government, semi-government and autonomous offices. The capital of the
country is Dhaka. The citizens are to be known as Bangladeshis.
Finally, Part I asserts
that all powers belong to the people and the constitution, being the supreme
law of the country, will supersede any other laws and regulations.
Part
II: Fundamental principles of state policy
This part describes the
fundamental principles. The original 1972 constitution had 4 basic principles:
Secularity, Nationalism, Democracy and Socialism (meaning economic and social
justice for all). However, later amendments replaced Secularity with
"Absolute trust and faith in the Almighty Allah shall be the basis of all
actions."[4]
Part II's article 9,
10, and 11 declares the rights of the people. Article 9 provides guidelines for
quotas for the underrepresented communities, women, and peasants. Article 10
states the equal rights of women. Article 11 states that Bangladesh would be a
democracy, with guaranteed human rights. Articles 13, 14, 15, and 16 deal with
principal of ownership, emancipation of workers and peasants, provision of
basic necessities, and rural development. Article 17 states that the basic education
will be free and compulsory for all children.[5] The remaining articles (18-25)
provide various guarantees for public health and morality, equality of
opportunity, work as a right and duty, duties of citizens and of public
servants, separation of Judiciary from the executive, national culture,
national monuments, and promotion of international peace, security and
solidarity, respectively.
Amendments
As of 2015 the
Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh has been amended 16 times.
References
1. "Bangladesh's
Constitution in Bengali,Online on Bangladesh Government Website.".
2. "On Realizing
Our Constitutional Dreams". Forum. The Daily Star. November 2010.
3. "Bangladesh
1972 (reinst. 1986, rev. 2011)". Constitute. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
4. "Constitution
of Bangladesh: Part II: Fundamental Principles of State Policy". Chief
Adviser's Office. Prime Minister's Office. Government of the People's Republic
of Bangladesh. Archived from the original on 6 January 2014.
5. "THE
CONSTITUTION OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF BANGLADESH: Article 17 (Free and
compulsory education)".