Bangladesh Defense
Saif
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Date of Event:
Feb 15, 2026
Experts for MPs’ oath by CEC as govt weighs options
M Moneruzzaman 14 February, 2026, 00:32
File photo
The interim government is considering two options to administer the oath to members of the 13th parliament, as the speaker and deputy speaker of the 12th parliament are no longer in office.
The options are a person nominated by the president, or the chief election commissioner can administer the oath.
Most of the legal experts, however, said that the government may choose the CEC to administer the oath to remove any controversy.
Election Commission officials said on Friday that they will publish the election gazette after receiving hard copies of the results from the district returning officers. The returning officers have already sent the results online.
Under order 5 of the Rules of Procedure of Parliament, the president-nominated person can administer the oath within three days after the publication of the election gazette.
If that period lapses, article 148 of the constitution allows the CEC to administer the oath.
The Rules of Procedure also state that the person administering the oath will preside over the first sitting of parliament until the speaker of the 13th parliament is elected.
Article 48 states that a person elected or appointed to an office listed in the Third Schedule must take an oath or affirmation before starting the job.
If the constitution says a specific person must administer the oath, that person can designate another person and place to do it.
If the designated person fails or is unable to administer the oath to newly elected MPs within three days after the election results are published in the gazette, the chief election commissioner must administer the oath within the next three days.
A person is considered to have taken office immediately after taking the oath.
The Rules of Procedure 5 requires MPs to take the oath before the first sitting of parliament, administered by the outgoing speaker or, in their absence, the deputy speaker. If both posts are vacant, the president’s nominee administers the oath and presides over the House until a new speaker is elected. MPs who miss the initial oath may take it later at a time set by the speaker.
Chief adviser’s deputy press secretary Abul Kalam Azad Majumder said that Professor Ali Riaz, special assistant to the chief adviser, will brief the media at 11:00am on Saturday on the oath and referendum issues.
Environment, forest and climate change adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan told New Age that the government was consulting with political parties on the oath issue, as it plans to hand over power to the newly elected government by February 18.Daily newspaper subscription
Another adviser, however, said that the government was discussing the matter with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, which secured a parliamentary majority.
The BNP won 209 seats, while the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami secured 68 seats in the 13th parliamentary elections, according to unofficial results released by the Election Commission.
On the referendum, EC senior secretary Akhtar Ahmed said the 48,074,429 voters (68.05 percent) voted ‘Yes’ and 22,565,627 voters (31.95 percent) voted ‘No’ on the July National Charter (Constitutional Reform) Order 2025.
Law adviser Asif Nazrul said on February 6 that the situation was exceptional, as the speaker remained missing and the deputy speaker was now in jail, leaving no scope for the duo to administer the oath.
If both are unable to conduct the oath-taking, a person nominated by the president on the advice of the chief adviser, such as the chief justice, can administer the oath, he said.
If the oath is not administered within three days of the publication of election results, the chief election commissioner can administer it, he added.
‘The government has two options, but prefers not to wait for three days and wants to arrange the oath quickly,’ he said.
Article 148(2A) authorises the CEC to administer the oath after the three-day period, jurist Shahdeen Malik said.
He, however, said that the CEC would preside over the first parliamentary sitting only briefly, as the Rules of Procedure require the president-nominated person to preside until electing a speaker.Bangladesh cultural tours
Senior lawyer Ahsanul Karim argued that article 148(2A) may not apply here because the speaker and the deputy speaker are deemed to remain in office until their successors assume office under article 74 of the constitution.
Former judiciary reform commission member Tanim Hussain Shawon rejected that view, saying that there is no legal barrier for the CEC to administer the oath if the speaker is untraceable or the deputy speaker is in jail.
Shahdeen and Tanim said that the government can choose the CEC to administer the oath after three days of the gazette as per the constitutional provision stated in article 148 to remove any controversy.
The Rules of Procedure also allow a president’s nominee to administer the oath within three days of the publication of the gazette if the speaker and deputy speaker are unable to do so.
M Moneruzzaman 14 February, 2026, 00:32
File photo
The interim government is considering two options to administer the oath to members of the 13th parliament, as the speaker and deputy speaker of the 12th parliament are no longer in office.
The options are a person nominated by the president, or the chief election commissioner can administer the oath.
Most of the legal experts, however, said that the government may choose the CEC to administer the oath to remove any controversy.
Election Commission officials said on Friday that they will publish the election gazette after receiving hard copies of the results from the district returning officers. The returning officers have already sent the results online.
Under order 5 of the Rules of Procedure of Parliament, the president-nominated person can administer the oath within three days after the publication of the election gazette.
If that period lapses, article 148 of the constitution allows the CEC to administer the oath.
The Rules of Procedure also state that the person administering the oath will preside over the first sitting of parliament until the speaker of the 13th parliament is elected.
Article 48 states that a person elected or appointed to an office listed in the Third Schedule must take an oath or affirmation before starting the job.
If the constitution says a specific person must administer the oath, that person can designate another person and place to do it.
If the designated person fails or is unable to administer the oath to newly elected MPs within three days after the election results are published in the gazette, the chief election commissioner must administer the oath within the next three days.
A person is considered to have taken office immediately after taking the oath.
The Rules of Procedure 5 requires MPs to take the oath before the first sitting of parliament, administered by the outgoing speaker or, in their absence, the deputy speaker. If both posts are vacant, the president’s nominee administers the oath and presides over the House until a new speaker is elected. MPs who miss the initial oath may take it later at a time set by the speaker.
Chief adviser’s deputy press secretary Abul Kalam Azad Majumder said that Professor Ali Riaz, special assistant to the chief adviser, will brief the media at 11:00am on Saturday on the oath and referendum issues.
Environment, forest and climate change adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan told New Age that the government was consulting with political parties on the oath issue, as it plans to hand over power to the newly elected government by February 18.Daily newspaper subscription
Another adviser, however, said that the government was discussing the matter with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, which secured a parliamentary majority.
The BNP won 209 seats, while the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami secured 68 seats in the 13th parliamentary elections, according to unofficial results released by the Election Commission.
On the referendum, EC senior secretary Akhtar Ahmed said the 48,074,429 voters (68.05 percent) voted ‘Yes’ and 22,565,627 voters (31.95 percent) voted ‘No’ on the July National Charter (Constitutional Reform) Order 2025.
Law adviser Asif Nazrul said on February 6 that the situation was exceptional, as the speaker remained missing and the deputy speaker was now in jail, leaving no scope for the duo to administer the oath.
If both are unable to conduct the oath-taking, a person nominated by the president on the advice of the chief adviser, such as the chief justice, can administer the oath, he said.
If the oath is not administered within three days of the publication of election results, the chief election commissioner can administer it, he added.
‘The government has two options, but prefers not to wait for three days and wants to arrange the oath quickly,’ he said.
Article 148(2A) authorises the CEC to administer the oath after the three-day period, jurist Shahdeen Malik said.
He, however, said that the CEC would preside over the first parliamentary sitting only briefly, as the Rules of Procedure require the president-nominated person to preside until electing a speaker.Bangladesh cultural tours
Senior lawyer Ahsanul Karim argued that article 148(2A) may not apply here because the speaker and the deputy speaker are deemed to remain in office until their successors assume office under article 74 of the constitution.
Former judiciary reform commission member Tanim Hussain Shawon rejected that view, saying that there is no legal barrier for the CEC to administer the oath if the speaker is untraceable or the deputy speaker is in jail.
Shahdeen and Tanim said that the government can choose the CEC to administer the oath after three days of the gazette as per the constitutional provision stated in article 148 to remove any controversy.
The Rules of Procedure also allow a president’s nominee to administer the oath within three days of the publication of the gazette if the speaker and deputy speaker are unable to do so.
