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According to the constitution, parliament must approve or reject ordinances within 30 calendar days of its first sitting, which was on March 12. If they are not ratified by April 10, the ordinances will expire.

Of the four ordinances the committee recommended for repeal, three are related to judicial independence, creating judicial posts, and the development of the judiciary.

Masder Hossain, retired district judge and member of the Judiciary Reform Commission formed by the interim government, expressed disappointment.

He told The Daily Star that repealing these measures would frustrate the Supreme Court’s landmark judgment separating the judiciary from the executive. He cautioned that appointments and control of judges could revert to politicisation and nepotism.

If the judiciary is not strong, how would the human rights of people be established, he questioned.

Supreme Court lawyer and human rights activist ZI Khan Panna said the rule of law has to be established first in the country, then the human rights commission or the inquiry commission on enforced disappearances might be constituted.

TIB Executive Director Iftekharuzzaman said, “The fact that people’s lives can become extremely difficult in the absence of an effective Human Rights Commission, an independent judiciary, and provisions for preventing enforced disappearances should not be forgotten by those in power, including the head of the ruling party.

“If they have truly learned any lessons from the authoritarian rule and the bloodshed of the July uprising, they should demonstrate this to the people by taking immediate steps to have these ordinances placed in parliament in their original form for approval.”

He questioned as to why the government, whose own party leaders had been victims of enforced disappearances and killings during the previous regime, has placed the ordinances related to the prevention of enforced disappearances into the “trap” of further review.

On the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Ordinance, Iftekharuzzaman, also chair of the ACC Reform Commission formed by the interim government, urged that the ordinance be revised in line with the recommendations of the ACC Reform Commission that were included in the July charter with consensus from all political parties, including the BNP.

Calling for the repeal of the Police Commission Ordinance, the TIB executive director said, “The ordinance fails to reflect the need for an independent and neutral police commission, which is essential to transform the police into a people-friendly and professional force.

The Right to Information (Amendment) Ordinance, 2026, must be revised -- particularly regarding the definition of information, expansion of jurisdiction, and provisions related to appointment, status, and tenure of commissioners -- before being placed in parliament as a bill.

“We strongly demand that all ordinances, including those recommended for suspension, be reviewed with the involvement of relevant experts and stakeholders and enacted into law without delay,” Iftekharuzzaman said.

Human rights activist Nur Khan Liton also expressed concern over the dropping of several key ordinances, saying the move risks undermining institutional reforms and accountability mechanisms.

Liton argued that amendments could have been introduced during the current parliamentary session without allowing the ordinances to expire. “That would have avoided any legal or institutional gaps,” he said.

He warned that the expiry of the ordinances would create a vacuum, weaken institutions, and expose vulnerabilities in governance and human rights protection.

About the ordinance on enforced disappearances, Liton said, “Its expiry effectively gives those involved in such abuses a breathing space.”

Hopes for a stronger, more independent human rights framework would once again suffer a setback, he said.

Efforts to protect human rights or to make Human Rights Commission activities effective never reached the desired level, he said, adding, “A major reason was the weakness of the law, along with successive governments’ attempts to impose partisan control.”

“Past governments were busy putting a party label on the commission, and as a result, it could not play an effective role. The ordinance had created some scope for change, but with its expiry, the commission would once again return to a weakened position,” Liton said.

Law Minister Md Asaduzzaman told The Daily Star that the government would further scrutinise the ordinances and correct them before reintroducing them as bills in parliament.

“We have not said that we will not approve those ordinances. We are just deferring it for consultation with stakeholders as there are some errors,” he said.

Nagorik Coalition, a platform of civil society members, also expressed concern over the move to repeal four ordinances.

In a statement yesterday, the platform said the move undermines long-awaited reforms intended to ensure the independence of the judiciary.

The coalition believes any changes to the judiciary’s administrative structure should strengthen, not weaken, the court’s institutional autonomy, the statement read.