Clear confusion between partial consensus and differing opinions

Since the time of the mass uprising, the slogan “State reform is needed” has echoed. The fascist, autocratic structure of the state must be changed. To initiate state reform, Dr Muhammad Yunus, after taking charge of the interim government on 8 August, formed six reform commissions to work on different sectors of the state.

The Consensus Commission sought opinions from 39 political parties on key recommendations from five of those commissions. Of them, 34 parties have submitted their feedback, and the commission is now holding individual meetings with each party. Initial discussions have already been completed with 12 parties, and talks are currently ongoing with the BNP.

After the second day of discussions with the Consensus Commission on Sunday (20 April), BNP Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed told reporters, “The BNP wants the reinstatement of the Fifth Amendment in the preamble of the Constitution. Additionally, the party agrees with the commission’s proposed amendment regarding pluralism in the Constitution. However, the BNP disagrees with changing the constitutional name of the state. The party also expressed a different opinion on the proposal that the head of government and the head of the ruling party should not be the same person.”

He added that while the BNP agrees with many of the commission’s recommendations, it holds differing views on some key issues. One such disagreement is with the commission’s suggestion to draw a parallel between the years 1971 and 2024 in the context of national transformation.

On several key recommendations by the Consensus Commission, the BNP has expressed dissent, the National Citizen Party (NCP) and Islamic-oriented parties such as Jamaat-e-Islami, among others, have largely agreed with those same proposals. Conversely, on issues where the BNP has agreed, those Islamic parties have shown strong opposition.

Out of the 166 recommendations by the commission, the NCP has expressed support for 113. Sarwar Tushar, Joint Convener of the student-led NCP and Coordinator of the Reform Coordination Committee, said, “We proposed that the Prime Minister should be the senior-most member of the Cabinet, not necessarily the party not necessarily the party chief. But the BNP objected to this idea.”

Various parties have expressed contrasting opinions on several other issues as well. On matters like a bicameral parliament and proportional representation in elections, the parties hold differing views. While the BNP supports urgent, minimal reforms followed by quick elections, the NCP advocates for fundamental reforms before any election takes place.

As a major political party, the BNP has placed the highest and most forceful set of demands before the Reform Commission. However, the demands of the NCP — a party formed by the youth who led the July uprising — also carry weight that the commission cannot ignore.

So, how will consensus be reached in such a divided landscape? On one hand, the Awami League — which is not a banned party — has neither been consulted nor have its views been made public. Does this mean elections and reforms will go ahead without the Awami League's participation?

Meanwhile, several Islamist parties have also raised demands for fundamental reforms. Jamaat-e-Islami has voiced support for reinstating 'absolute faith and trust in Almighty Allah' in the core principles of the constitution. Though it agrees in principle with the idea of a bicameral parliament, Jamaat has not expressed full agreement. Khilafat-e-Majlis has also echoed similar views in line with Jamaat.

The Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) has proposed urgent reforms to the electoral system — but can it find common ground with parties like Jamaat-e-Islami, Khilafat-e-Majlis, and the BNP? This highlights a deeper challenge: political parties themselves are far from unified, making it much harder to reach a true consensus.

So what, then, is the role of the Consensus Commission? Overall, the situation appears murky and complicated. There are many questions in front of us, and few clear answers. Ordinary citizens are left with little choice but to wait.

What people really want is clarity. Vague phrases like 'partial consensus with some differences' offer little understanding. The faster the Consensus Commission can cut through the confusion surrounding partial disagreements by engaging directly and transparently with political parties, the better it will be for the country.