Article 70 to remain effective in presidential election: Chief Whip

Chief Whip of the Jatiya Sangsad (JS) Md Nurul Islam Moni on Tuesday said Article 70 of the Constitution will remain effective in the upcoming presidential election, meaning any lawmaker voting against party decision will lose parliament membership.

He made the remarks while talking to journalists after a meeting at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban between parliamentary representatives of the ruling and opposition parties and officials of the Election Commission (EC) and Parliament Secretariat on preparations for the upcoming presidential election slated for 20 August.

The Chief Whip said the presidential election will be held on 20 August, while the deadline for withdrawal of candidature is the night of 18 August after submission and scrutiny of nomination papers.

“The ruling party’s presidential candidate has not yet been finalized. The Prime Minister will nominate the candidate, and the name will be announced on the day of submission of the nomination paper,” he said.

He said detailed discussions were held at Tuesday's meeting to ensure a free, fair and transparent presidential election.

According to the decisions taken at the meeting, voting will be held from 2pm to 5pm on August 20 at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban. Members of Parliament will cast their votes according to their seat and division numbers, he said.

Nurul Islam Moni said the media would be allowed to broadcast live the voting.

“The ballot counting and preparation of the election result after voting would also be allowed to be broadcast live until the declaration of the result,” he added.

He said there are a total of 349 voters in Parliament. If voting is completed before the scheduled time, the ballots will be counted and the result will be announced promptly. If voting remains incomplete, the authorities will wait until 5pm and announce the result thereafter.

The Chief Whip said the Chief Election Commissioner will act as the Returning Officer, while necessary Election Commission officials and employees will perform election duties with secretarial support from the Parliament Secretariat.

Asked whether Article 70 of the Constitution would remain effective during the presidential election, he said, “As Article 70 of the Constitution has not been amended, it will remain effective.”

Asked whether lawmakers would be able to vote for a candidate other than the candidate preferred by their party, Nurul Islam Moni said any lawmaker voting against the party’s decision would lose membership of Parliament under Article 70.

Opposition Chief Whip Nahid Islam said Colonel (Retd) Oli Ahmad, Bir Bikram, has been announced as the opposition candidate for the presidential election on behalf of the 11-party alliance.

He said the country had not witnessed a competitive presidential election for nearly 35 years and that the opposition had fielded a candidate in the interest of democracy and to ensure a participatory election.

“The opposition did not want the election to be held uncontested. That is why we have nominated a candidate,” he said, adding that discussions were also held at today’s meeting on ensuring a fair election.

Later, Chief Whip Nurul Islam Moni said there was consensus on four areas concerning Article 70 in the July Charter, one of which is the presidential election.

“Even if the July Charter is implemented, Article 70 will remain effective in the presidential election,” he said.

He said the government was working to ensure a transparent electoral process with the aim of continuing the democratic process and journey and institutionalizing democracy.

“We want to create such a process so that the people of the country become confident in elections in the future and feel satisfied by electing candidates of their choice,” he said.

Regarding the formation of a Constitution Reform Council, Nurul Islam Moni said there was no need to form such a council. Necessary reforms would be carried out through amendments to the Constitution, as is done in other democratic countries, he said.

Citing the example of India, he said the Indian Constitution, adopted in 1950, had been amended 106 times up to 2024. “Changes have been made through amendments each time; a new constitution was not written and no Constitution Amendment Council was formed,” he said.

 “We will implement every letter, full stop, comma and semicolon of the July Charter exactly as it is. We all signed the charter together, and implementing it is our commitment,” he said.

The Chief Whip said a new bill would be placed in the next session of Parliament as part of implementing the July Charter.

He also said the government would take all necessary measures to continue the democratic process and institutionalize democracy.