The first session of Bangladesh’s 13th National Parliament will begin today at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban, Dhaka, marking the start of legislative activities of the newly elected House. According to the Parliament Secretariat, the session will commence at 11:00 am after being convened by President Mohammad Shahabuddin on February 23 under Article 72(1) of the Constitution. The President is also scheduled to deliver the traditional presidential address at the opening sitting.
Ahead of the inaugural session, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party Parliamentary Party held a meeting on Wednesday and authorised Prime Minister and Leader of the House Tarique Rahman to decide the candidates for the posts of Speaker and Deputy Speaker. The two posts will be elected during the first sitting of the House.
As there will initially be no Speaker or Deputy Speaker, a senior member of parliament from the treasury bench will temporarily preside over the session to conduct the election of the two offices. After their election, the new Speaker will take charge of the proceedings. The main opposition in the new parliament is led by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, with party chief Shafiqur Rahman serving as Leader of the Opposition. The party has so far declined a proposal from the ruling BNP to nominate a deputy speaker from the opposition.
