Article 70 of the Constitution of Bangladesh
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Article 70 of the Constitution of Bangladesh is a controversial clause restricting voting freedom in the
History
Article 70 was written as a result of the
Text
The text of the article is given in the following:[3]-
A person elected as a member of Parliament at an election at which he was nominated as a candidate by a political party shall vacate his seat if he –
(a) resigns from that party ; or
(b) votes in Parliament against that party ;
but shall not thereby be disqualified for subsequent election as a member of Parliament.
Implications
The article has the effect of preventing
The provision is contrary to the norms of Westminster systems, as in the parliaments of the United Kingdom, India, Pakistan and Australia; as well as other democratic systems, such as in the U.S. Congress and Japanese Diet.
Critics argue Article 70 contradicts
Reform
Political scientists, public intellectuals, journalists, civil rights activists and members of parliament have demanded that Article 70 be reformed.[7][4][8][9][10]
While delivering judgements, the Supreme Court of Bangladesh has opined that Article 70 is undemocratic.[7]
See also
- Parliamentary supremacy
References
- ^ "The Bangladesh Constituent Assembly Members (Cessation of Membership) Order, 1972". Laws of Bangladesh. Archived from the original on 2015-11-19.
- ^ Hasanuzzaman (22 April 2011). "To amend Article 70 or not" (PDF). New Age (Op-ed) – via Centre for Policy Dialogue.
- ^ "70. Vacation of seat on resignation or voting against political party". Bdlaws.minlaw.gov.bd. Retrieved 2017-07-11.
- ^ a b "Article 70: Contradiction with the spirit of the constitution". Dhaka Tribune. 2014-02-20. Archived from the original on 2017-06-26. Retrieved 2017-07-11.
- ^ "Monolithic power makes PM Sheikh Hasina a 'dictator', says BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia". The Daily Star. 10 May 2017. Retrieved 2017-07-11.
- ^ Simon Tisdall and Anna Ridout in Dhaka (21 September 2015). "Bangladesh's PM rejects claims of repression: 'I do politics for the people' | World news". The Guardian. Retrieved 2017-07-11.
- ^ a b "16th Amendment scrapped". The Daily Star (Editorial). 2017-07-04. Retrieved 2017-07-11.
- ^ Sabbir Ahmed (January 2010). "Article 70 of the Constitution of Bangladesh: Implications for the Process of Democratisation" (PDF). BLISS Journal. 31 (1): 1–13. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-12-03.
- ^ "Calls for review of Constitution, Article 70". bdnews24.com. 2009-01-11. Retrieved 2017-07-11.
- ^ "Awami League MP wants to allow vote against National budget". The Daily Star. 19 June 2017. Retrieved 2017-07-11.