JS goes into 12th session
The 12th session of the 10th Parliament began yesterday, with Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury in the chair. Members of the main opposition, Jatiya Party (Ershad), participated in the session. According to the decision of the Business Advisory Committee (BAC), this will be a brief session. It has been summoned following a constitutional provision to convene a session of Parliament within 60 days.
President Abdul Hamid summoned the session exercising the power bestowed upon him by Clause (1) of Article 72 of the Constitution. After the meeting of the BAC, the House proceeded to the days business at about 5.10 pm. The BAC has decided to run the session until October 10. The days business will begin at 5pm every day. The meeting of the BAC to determine the tenure of the session was held at Sangsad Bhaban before the session began. Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury presided over the meeting, which was attended by opposition leader Raushan Ershad, JP chairman Hussain Muhammad Ershad, industries minister Amir Hossain Amu, commerce minister Tofail Ahmed, Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, Suranjit Sengupta, Abul Hasnat Abdullah, chief whip ASM Feroz and law minister Anisul Haq.
The leader of the House, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, is currently touring the USA.
Welcoming the lawmakers to the treasury and opposition benches, the Speaker nominated a panel of chairpersons to run the session in the absence of the Speaker and the deputy dpeaker. The panel includes Abdul Matin Khasru, Mahmud Us Samad Chowdhury, Enamul Haque, Fakhrul Imam and Ayesha Ferdous.
The Speaker then moved obituary references separately, along with brief resumes of those who have died during the prorogation after the 11th session of the 10th Parliament. The House unanimously adopted the obituary references to a number of distinguished personalities, including two former state ministers and four MPs. While moving the references, the Speaker said the House expresses deep shock at the deaths of MP M Abdur Rahim, former member of the constitution-framing committee, two former state ministers M Korban Ali and M Fazlur Rahman Patal, four former MPs Dr MA Mannan, Ali Reza Raju, Abdur Razzak Khan, and Manabendra Narayan Larma, and a driver of the Parliament Secretariat, M Biplob Hossain.
The House also mourned poet Shahid Quadri, AFM Mohitul Islam, freedom fighter and complainant of the Bangabandhu murder case, Awami League leader Prof. Nazma Rahman, freedom fighter Shirin Banu Mitil, legendary boxer Mohammad Ali, Sydney Schonberg, friend of the Liberation War, Sadruddin Ahmed Chawdhury, former vice-chancellor of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, and actor Farid Ali.
The House also expressed regret at the death of people in a boiler explosion at Tampaco Foils Factory at Tongi and a launch capsize in the Sandhya River at Banaripara in Barisal. The Speaker expressed deep sympathy with the members of the bereaved families and prayed for the peace of the departed souls. The lawmakers also observed a minute of silence as a mark of respect to the departed souls. Later, a munajat was offered, seeking eternal peace for the departed souls.
