Govt extends Consensus Commission's tenure by a month

The commission is set to hold a third round of talks with political parties next week to build consensus on key constitutional issues

The interim government has extended the term of the National Consensus Commission by one month ahead of its planned third round of talks with political parties.

The commission’s tenure will run until Sept 15, the Cabinet Division announced in a notice on Monday.

The government formed the panel on Feb 12 to hold discussions with political parties and stakeholders in order to consider the recommendations of six reform commissions and build national consensus.

Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus was named chairman of the commission, with Prof Ali Riaz, head of the Constitutional Reform Commission, serving as vice-chairman.

Other members include Ayub Mia of the Public Administration Reform Commission, Safar Raj Hossain, head of the Police Reform Commission, Badiul Alam Majumdar, head of the Electoral Reform Commission, Justice Emdadul Hoque of the Judicial Reform Commission, and Iftekharuzzaman, head of the Anti-Corruption Commission Reform Commission.

The commission began work on Feb 15 with a six-month term ending on Aug 15.

In the first phase of talks, consensus was reached on 62 out of 166 proposals, while the second phase saw agreement on 20 key constitutional issues.

On Aug 8, the commission announced plans to meet political parties again to decide how to implement reform proposals and ensure compliance with the July Charter. With its term nearing expiry, the government decided to extend its mandate by a month.