‘Secular, socialist’: Why Yunus-led govt wants to tweak Bangladesh Constitution

Amid concerns from India and the US over rising extremism and attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh, the country's attorney general Md Asaduzzaman has called for removing the words “socialism” and “secularism” from the country’s constitution.The proposal, which comes just months after the mass uprising that unseated the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government, has sparked fears the predominantly Muslim nation could be shifting toward an Islamic state. According to agency reports, Asaduzzaman argued during a recent high court hearing on the validity of the 15th constitutional amendment that “socialism and secularism do not reflect the realities of a nation where 90% of the population is Muslim”. The suggestion intensified debate over Bangladesh’s future ideological direction.What’s the basic contention?The country’s top law official, appointed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus-led interim government, asserted that “democracy, not socialism, can be the fundamental principle of state policy,” and urged the court to declare the 15th amendment unconstitutional, suggesting that only select provisions be retained.The 15th amendment, passed in 2011 under the now-ousted Awami League administration, designated “nationalism, socialism, democracy, and secularism” as foundational principles of Bangladesh’s state policy, restored freedom of religion, and increased women’s representation. The amendment also abolished the caretaker government system for overseeing elections, introduced capital punishment for unconstitutional regime changes, and designated Bangladesh’s founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as the “father of the nation”.Asaduzzaman contended that the amendment “directly contradicts” the spirit of the 1971 Liberation War, the anti-autocracy movement of the 1990s, and the mass uprising in July-August 2024. “If this amendment is not scrapped, the souls of the martyrs, including Abu Sayeed and Mugdho [Mir Mahfuzur Rahman], won’t rest in peace,” he said.Referring to Mujibur Rahman, popularly known as Bangabandhu, the attorney general accused the Awami League of politicising his legacy for partisan gain. “Mujibur Rahman was the undisputed leader of Bangladesh, but Awami League politicised him in the party’s interest,” he said. medium115377622Why the move has drawn flakKamal Hossain, one of the original framers of the constitution, has voiced opposition to the attorney general’s stand. He emphasises that constitutional changes should not be undertaken unilaterally. “Reforms should be carried out only after taking people’s opinions into account,” he says.Hossain also criticises the controversial Article 7A, added under the 15th amendment, which criminalises any attempt to suspend or subvert the constitution through force or unconstitutional means. Such acts are classified as sedition and are punishable by death.Hossain argues that this restriction curtails democratic change and disregards the recent popular movement that overthrew Hasina’s Awami League administration of 15 years. He calls for the restoration of the caretaker government system.medium115378328A similar row in IndiaIn India, the opposition Congress accuses the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of trying to change the basic structure of the Constitution. The latter, however, claims it was the Congress that made amendments to the Constitution when in power.The Supreme Court is currently hearing a batch of pleas challenging the inclusion of the words “secularism” and “socialism” in the Preamble to the Constitution by way of the 42nd Amendment in 1976. Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy is among the petitioners.During a recent hearing, the top court reaffirmed that the terms “socialist” and “secular” are part of the basic structure of the Constitution and cannot be altered. The matter would be heard next on November 18. The 1973 SC judgment in the Keshvananda Bharati case established the basic structure doctrine of the Indian Constitution.Meanwhile… concerns in US, IndiaThere are serious concerns in the US over growing extremism in the Muslim-majority South Asian country, a former White House official has said, observing that deposed former PM Sheikh Hasina did a good job in controlling it.Lisa Curtis, who served as US President-elect Donald Trump's South Asia point-person in his first term, has said there is concern about the future and what it could bring to Bangladesh.“There's also a lot of concern. Some Islamist extremists have been released from jails. There have been some attacks on minorities, Hindus, Christians,” Curtis, who served as National Security Council senior director for South and Central Asia from 2017 to 2021, told news agency PTI.medium115377993In a statement days before the November 5 general elections, Trump condemned the attack on Hindus in violence-hit Bangladesh. “We've seen a history of terrorism in Bangladesh. You had the Holy [Artisan] Bakery attacks in 2016. Very serious incident. You've had some ISIS [Islamic State] elements in Bangladesh. Sheikh Hasina had done a good job of controlling the extremist problem in Bangladesh,” said Curtis.There is understandably some concern that these elements return to the political scene, which would not be helpful for Bangladesh, she said.“So even though it might not be the number one priority of [President-elect] Trump, I think his team, his national security team, will have to pay attention to what's happening [in Bangladesh],” she added.Indian Americans are working to reach out to the upcoming Trump administration and the Congress next year to seek action against the Bangladeshi regime, including imposing economic sanctions, an influential community leader has said.Dr Bharat Barai, an Indian American physician, exuded confidence that Trump would act against the South Asian nation over the persecution of the Hindu minority after he is sworn in as the 47th president of the United States.Earlier this month, India had urged Bangladesh to take action against extremist elements and protect the minority Hindus in the port city of Chittagong, where cases of violence against the community were reported.medium nocaption115378295 With inputs from Ahsan Tasnim and agencies