Bangladesh: Jamaat boycotts BNP cabinet swearing-in as Tarique Rahman takes office

Jamaat boycott clouds Bangladesh’s new government start

The swearing-in of Bangladesh’s new government was overshadowed after the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami announced it would boycott the cabinet oath ceremony led by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).

The decision came shortly after its ally, the National Citizen Party (NCP), declared it would also stay away from the event. Jamaat leader Shafiqul Islam Masud confirmed that the party had resolved at a parliamentary committee meeting not to attend the ceremony.

“The party has decided not to participate in the cabinet oath-taking ceremony. Jamaat is boycotting the event in protest against the BNP's refusal to take oath as members of the Constitutional Reform Council,” he said.

The boycott marked an abrupt escalation in tensions between the two right-leaning parties, once long-time allies but now uneasy rivals despite contesting the election against a weakened field.

Earlier in the day, President Mohammad Shahabuddin administered the oath of office to the new cabinet, formally installing BNP chairman Tarique Rahman as prime minister after his party secured a commanding parliamentary majority.

The BNP won 209 of the 297 contested seats in the 13th parliamentary elections, while Jamaat secured 68 seats, emerging as the main opposition after the Awami League was barred from contesting the polls.

Dispute over constitutional reform

The rift stems from a second oath linked to a proposed “Constitution Reform Council”, intended to bind Members of Parliament to implement sweeping changes under the so-called “July Charter”.

Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasirudin administered the oath to BNP MPs inside the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban in the first phase, with Jamaat MPs next in line. However, the situation became fraught after the BNP declined to take the additional pledge.

“We will take no oath unless BNP MPs take oath as members of ‘Constitution Reform Council’ alongside regular parliament members,” Jamaat’s deputy chief Abdullah Mohammad Taher said, arguing that “parliament without the constitutional reform is meaningless”.

The referendum on the reform package reportedly saw over 60 per cent of voters cast a “yes” vote. Yet BNP leaders maintain that the council has no constitutional basis. Salahuddin Ahmed, a BNP standing committee member, said: “We have not been elected as members of the Constitution Reform Council; no provision of the council is yet to be incorporated in the Constitution.” He added that none of the BNP’s MPs would take the second oath, acting on the direction of Tarique Rahman.

From courtesy visit to confrontation

The public disagreement came just a day after Tarique Rahman made what was described as a “courtesy visit” to Jamaat chief Shafiqur Rahman at his residence. Photographs released by the BNP showed the two leaders standing side by side, with Shafiqur Rahman holding a bouquet intended for Rahman. The BNP leader also met NCP convenor Nahid Islam later the same day, fuelling hopes of post-election coordination.

Those hopes now appear strained, with Jamaat opting for protest over participation at a ceremony attended by nearly 1,200 domestic and foreign guests. Among international attendees were Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla representing India, Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu and other regional dignitaries.

Under Bangladesh’s Constitution, the President invites the leader of the majority party to form the government and administers the cabinet oath. Even as the BNP takes office with a comfortable mandate, the early dispute with Jamaat underscores the delicate balancing act ahead.

For many observers, the ceremony was meant to symbolise political closure after a polarising election. Instead, it has opened a new chapter of contention over how far constitutional reform should go — and who should shape it.