Suranjit Sengupta, chief of the parliamentary standing committee on the law ministry, yesterday once again asked Transparency International Bangladesh to apologise for "humiliating" the House, constitution and the state.

Legal action will otherwise be taken, he told journalists, adding, "If necessary new regulations will be formulated to take action against such NGOs."

The senior Awami League MP made the remarks, comingout of a meeting of the parliamentary committee at the JS complex.

Meanwhile, TIB Executive Director Iftekharuzzaman told The Daily Star the anti-graft watchdog would extend its full cooperation to the House in taking any measure over the TIB report released on October 25.

In a press release, he said, “The honourable members of parliament discussed Parliament Watch report by TIB with such importance that we have considered it positive and recognition ofTIB’swork."

He expressed the hope that necessary measures will be taken considering information, analysis and suggestions of the report to make the parliament effective.

TIB thinks that it would be wise to go through the series of the "Parliament Watch" reports published by it since the eighth parliament in 2001, according to the press release.

In the report, it said lawmakers' participation in question-answer sessions and discussions on important issues were less in the current parliament - from second to sixth sessions between June 2014 and July this year.

The study also concludes that the

main opposition Jatiya Party failed to play its due role in the sessions.

Meanwhile, several lawmakers of the treasury and opposition benches on Monday demanded that the Speaker summon TIB officials immediately to the House to question them over the "derogatory remarks" on parliament.

In the briefing at the Jatiya Sangsad Media Centre, Suranjit said the JS body on law was now scrutinising "Foreign Donations Act" bill. The government, if required, will incorporate provisions in it to empower the authorities concerned to take action against such NGOs for humiliating parliament and the state, he added.

"The committee members have expressed similar views on the matter."

The Foreign Donations Act was placed in parliament on September 1, which was then sent to the JS body for scrutiny.

Lambasting TIB, Suranjit said it was acting like a parallel government.

“Who are you [TIB| to make derogatory comments on parliament? Why should you speak on the country's politics and election?"

Only political parties have the jurisdiction to talk about these issues, he said.