National Election and Referendum on Same Day : Chief Advisor

Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus today announced that the national election and the referendum on the July charter will be held on the same day, as part of the government's efforts to resolve the ongoing political crisis.

In a 13-minute televised address to the nation this afternoon, Yunus said there will be one question for the referendum seeking people verdict on July Charter implementation order. But this question will have four parts, he added.

To balance conflicting demands, Yunus announced that the 100-member upper house will be formed through proportional representation, based on each party's share of votes in the national polls.

He said that the work of issuing implementation order is already in the last stage and waiting for the notification of gazette.

According to Yunus, all these decisions were taken from an advisory council meeting held earlier in the day.

The government had warned on November 3 that parties must resolve their differences within a week or it would "act as necessary." Yet divisions persisted.

On the referendum timing, BNP insists it should coincide with the election, while Jamaat-e-Islami demands it be held earlier. Jamaat and its allies have already launched protests over their five-point demand, which includes holding the referendum this month and issuing an implementation order for the July charter.

Both Jamaat factions want the charter legally recognized, with the National Citizen Party specifically demanding that the chief adviser—not the president—issue the order. BNP, meanwhile, demands that dissenting notes remain part of the implementation process, while Jamaat and NCP want them excluded.

The July National Charter, signed on October 17 by 25 parties including BNP and Jamaat, stipulates that any party submitting dissenting views must include them in its manifesto and may act on them if it wins the polls. However, the National Consensus Commission, in its October 28 recommendations, dropped the section on dissent.

During the talks, parties issued dissenting notes on more than 25 of the 48 constitutional reform proposals. BNP alone submitted notes on at least nine issues. It opposed a constitutional order for the charter's implementation and rejected the proposal that reforms approved by referendum be automatically inserted into the constitution if the council failed to act within 270 days.

BNP described the idea as "wholly irrational, politically motivated, and absurd," arguing that no bill can become law without parliamentary passage and presidential assent.