Direct inclusion of July Charter into constitution not possible: Shahdeen Malik

The July National Charter cannot be directly incorporated into the constitution without fundamental amendments to it, Supreme Court’s senior lawyer Shahdeen Malik has said.

For this reason, the BNP has yet to take any oath to implement the July Charter, he said.

Shahdeen Malik, also a constitutional expert, further explained that the July Charter is basically an executive order and was adopted as an agreement with certain political parties or leaders.

“There is no scope for inclusion of such an agreement in the constitution without amending it in accordance with the constitution. First, members of parliament will discuss the matter, and a Constitution Reform Committee will have to be formed in parliament based on the law,” he said. 

Some political parties, such as the NCP or Jamaat, are unnecessarily discussing the matter due to a lack of legal knowledge, he said.

“For the implementation of the July Charter, a legal basis is a must. An executive order is never a constitutional law,” Shahdeen added.