The 17th amendment to the constitution, which would maintain reserved seats for women in parliament for the next 25 years, will be placed in parliament on Sunday, the parliament secretariat said in a statement.
Chief Whip ASM Feroz asked all parliamentarians of his party to be present in parliament on time, with Sunday’s session expected to begin at 3 pm.
Awami League President and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had also asked all MPs from her party to be present during Sunday’s session during a meeting of the party’s parliamentary team on Thursday.
Law Minister Anisul Huq presented an amendment bill in parliament on Apr 10. The bill was then sent to the Standing Committee on the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs for scrutiny. The committee presented its report to parliament on Jun 6.
The number of reserved seats was increased to 50 through the 15th constitutional amendment in 2011, but the time was not extended.
The incumbent 10th parliament has 350 members: 300 elected in general elections and 50 MPs from seats reserved for women, reports bdnews24.
Any amendment to the constitution needs a two-third majority of votes from the parliamentarians. The ruling party Awami League has 232 votes.
The previous amendment to the constitution was adopted in 2016, restoring the power to remove High Court judges to parliament. Later, the Supreme Court declared the amendment illegal in a verdict. The government has appealed for a review of the verdict.
