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AL asked to amend its charter again

EC declines to compromise on RPO violation

Shakhawat Liton
The ruling Awami League (AL) will have to further amend its constitution in line with the Representation of the People Order (RPO) as the Election Commission (EC) has declined to compromise on the issue with any political party.
The EC at a meeting with an AL delegation yesterday asked them to amend the party constitution again to drop provisions which run counter to the RPO, meeting sources said.
AL constitution does not allow amending any of its provisions without holding council. The party delegation informed the EC about this difficulty.
The AL held its council on July 24, ratified the provisional changes in its constitution to get registered with the EC before the ninth parliamentary election, and submitted a copy of those to it.
The EC found two provisions in the ratified AL constitution inconsistent with the RPO, and asked the party on November 22 to further amend it.
"We asked Awami League to amend its constitution and submit it to the commission as soon as possible," Election Commissioner Muhammed Sohul Hussain told journalists following yesterday's meeting with the two-member ALdelegation. FROM PAGE 1
The AL constitution contains provisions which recognise Swadhinata Chikitsak Parishad, Awami Ainjibi Parishad and some more as associated bodies of AL, and allow formation of party units abroad.
The RPO however does not allow any party to have any associated or affiliated body consisting of teachers or students of any educational institution, or employees or workers of any financial, commercial or industrial establishment or institution, or members of any other profession. It also does not allow’ any party to have foreign chapters.
In compliance with the RPO provision, the AL dropped names of Sramik League and Chhatra League from the list of its associated bodies.
On receipt of the EC's letter, the AL team led by HT Imam, also adviser to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, discussed the issue with the EC.
Meeting sources said the AL delegation tried to persuade the EC to accept the party's ratified constitution submitted to it after the party council. They said if they
were informed before the party council, they could have followed the EC's directives to amend the party’ constitution in line with the RPO.
But the EC argued that the AL should have scrutinised its constitution in the light of the RPO before ratifying the provisional changes at the party council. The EC pointed out that the RPO does not allow’ AL to have Swadhinata Chikitsak Parishad as its associated body, meeting sources said.
“We may allow Awami Ainjibi Parishad to remain as an associated body of the party as we think lawyers should engage in politics," Sohul said.
HT Imam, also a member of the AL advisory council, told the EC that they would place the issue before party chief Sheikh Hasina on her return from abroad, and the party will then decide the next course of action.
Sohul said, "He [HT Imam] pointed out some difficulties in making further amendments to the party (AL) constitution as its council had recently been completed. But we did not compromise on the issue.”