- Jamaat-e-Islami boycotted the cabinet oath ceremony due to BNP's refusal to join the Reform Council
- BNP MPs declined the second oath for the Constitutional Reform Council after initial swearing-in
- National Citizen Party also boycotted, linking the oath refusal to constitutional legitimacy concerns
Jamaat-e-Islami, the opposition to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), announced that it would boycott the cabinet's oath ceremony. The Jamaat leader Shafiqul Islam Masud said that the party is refraining from participating because of BNP's refusal to take oath as members of the Constitutional Reform Council.
"The party has decided not to participate in the cabinet oath-taking ceremony. Jamaat is boycotting the event in protest against the BNP's refusal to take oath as members of the Constitutional Reform Council," Masud said.
BNP chairman Tarique Rahman takes oath as prime minister during a swearing-in ceremony at the National Parliament building in Dhaka on February 17, 2026.
Photo Credit: AFP
What was the second oath?
Members of Parliament were supposed to take a second oath linked to the "Constitution Reform Council", which aimed to implement changes under the "July Charter". However, after Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasirudin administered the oaths to the BNP MPs inside the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban, they refused to take the additional pledge.
Read | Tarique Rahman Takes Oath As Bangladesh PM After BNP's Landslide Win
Following this, the Jamaat's deputy chief, Abdullah Mohammad Taher, said, "We will take no oath unless BNP MPs take oath as members of the 'Constitution Reform Council' alongside regular parliament members." He added that the parliament without constitutional reform is "meaningless".
Salahuddin Ahmed, a BNP standing committee member, said that the MPs did not take the second oath on the instruction of the newly sworn-in Prime Minister of Bangladesh - Tarique Rahman.
"We have not been elected as members of the Constitution Reform Council; no provision of the council is yet to be incorporated in the Constitution," Ahmed said.
National Citizen Party (NCP) spokesperson Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain said that taking the oath without forming "Constitution Reform Council" is as good as upholding the constitution under ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Hence, the NCP also decided to boycott the swearing-in ceremony.
What is the July Charter?
The referendum sought people's consent to the July National Charter 2025, which aims to completely change how the country is governed. The July Charter outlines a total of 84 reform points related to state restructuring.
Read | 70% Bangladeshis Voted 'Yes' To July Charter. What Does It Mean?
It was drafted after the July 2024 student-led uprising that resulted in the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
A Constitutional Reform Council is expected to execute these reforms within 270 working days.
Muhammad Yunus and Head of the National Consensus Commission, shows the July National Charter on October 17, 2025
Photo Credit: AFP
What does the Charter propose?
The Charter's main aim is to prevent the concentration of executive power to prevent a "recurrence of authoritarian and fascist rule" by fundamentally restructuring key state institutions. Out of the 84 reform proposals, 47 require constitutional amendments, while the rest of the 37 will be implemented through laws or executive orders, according to Bangladesh's Business Standard.
BNP won a landslide victory in the February 12 general elections, with the party-led alliance securing a commanding 212 seats in the 300-seat parliament.
