After a landslide victory in the 13th national parliamentary election, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Chairman Tarique Rahman has been unanimously elected as the leader of the parliamentary party and the prime minister of the new government.
This historic decision was taken at the first meeting of the newly elected BNP members of parliament held at the National Parliament Building at around 11 am on Tuesday (February 17).
Earlier, Tarique Rahman and the newly elected people's representatives took oath as members of parliament by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM Nasir Uddin at the swearing-in hall of the Parliament Building at around 10:45 am. With the election of the leader of the parliamentary party, Tarique Rahman's becoming the next head of government of the country has now been officially finalized.
Today's important day began with the swearing-in of the newly elected MPs. The oath-taking ceremony began with the recitation of verse 91 of Surah An-Nahl of the Holy Quran. As per tradition, the BNP MPs as the majority party took the oath first, followed by other parties and independent candidates.
After taking the oath, the MPs signed the oath as per the rules. Numerous invited guests from both home and abroad were present at the ceremony. At the beginning of the meeting, BNP Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed addressed the MPs and clarified the party's position on the Constitutional Reform Council. It is worth noting that although they took the oath as MPs, they did not take the oath separately as members of the Constitutional Reform Council as per the 'July Charter' today.
After Tarique Rahman was elected leader in the parliamentary party meeting, everyone's attention is now on the main oath-taking ceremony to be held in the afternoon. Tarique Rahman will take the oath as Prime Minister in a royal ceremony organized by President Md. Shahabuddin at 4 pm today at the South Plaza of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban.
The new cabinet members will also take the oath at the same ceremony. A festive atmosphere prevails across the country centering on the return of BNP to state power after two long decades. This is the first time in the country's history that such a large-scale oath-taking ceremony has been organized in the open courtyard of the Parliament House instead of Bangabhaban.
The Cabinet Division is scheduled to issue a formal notification distributing the portfolios of the new ministers this evening. It is learnt that newly elected Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has already finalized the initial list of his cabinet, which is likely to have a bunch of new faces along with experienced ones.
Flawless security arrangements have been ensured around the Parliament House and its surrounding areas for the oath-taking ceremony, and 12 platoons of BGB have been deployed. If everything goes well, the first session of the 13th National Parliament is scheduled to be held on February 26, through which the newly elected government will fully begin its journey.
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