The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has expressed concerns over several aspects of the consolidated draft of the July National Charter. The party questioned whether any political agreement could take precedence over the Constitution, cautioning that granting the Charter such authority could create a dangerous precedent.

BNP also opposed a provision that would prevent judicial review of the Charter. Salahuddin Ahmed, a member of the BNP Standing Committee, outlined the party’s position on the consolidated draft to journalists on Tuesday. Salahuddin has been leading BNP’s discussions with the National Consensus Commission regarding proposed reforms.

According to BNP sources, the party’s Standing Committee met on Monday night to review the draft. A committee was subsequently formed to finalize BNP’s stance, which will be formally communicated to the National Consensus Commission. The party emphasized that it is willing to compromise where necessary to facilitate the election process.

Following last year’s mass uprising, the interim government launched reform initiatives across various state institutions. In the first phase, six reform commissions produced a total of 84 proposals, which were agreed upon through political consensus. These proposals have now been consolidated into the “July National Charter.”

On 29 July, the Commission distributed an initial draft to political parties. After considering feedback, a consolidated draft was prepared and circulated on Saturday evening.

“Can any agreement serve as a supra-constitutional instrument? We must carefully consider how such an agreement can be adopted and implemented within the legal and constitutional framework,” said Salahuddin Ahmed.

The initial draft stipulated that once a new government is elected, parties would implement the reforms within two years. While BNP had agreed to this timeline, other parties, including Jamaat-e-Islami and the National Citizens’ Party (NCP), raised objections, calling for the Charter to include a clear legal framework and defined implementation mechanism.

The consolidated draft addressed some of these concerns, but BNP has now raised fresh objections, mainly concerning three clauses in the commitment section and certain elements of the preamble.