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Introduction: Fifty Years of the Constitution of Bangladesh: Progression and Transformation

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Abstract

This introduction provides a historical and analytical account of the Bangladesh Constitution enacted under the influence of comparative constitutionalism, and its development and changing landscape precipitated over the last 50 years of its journey from genesis. It identifies the challenges ahead and the way forward with a reformist pursuit. It concludes by articulating the relevance of the book for constitutional law studies and summarising its chapters.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    David Landau, ‘Abusive Constitutionalism’ (2013) 47 UC Davis L Rev. 189, 195.

  2. 2.

    Richard Albert, ‘Amendment and revision in the unmaking of constitutions’ in David Landau and Hanaa Lerner (eds), Comparative Constitution Making, (Edward Elgar 2019) 117–141.

  3. 3.

    For example, the constitution 4th, 5th, 7th, 8th, and 15th Amendments.

  4. 4.

    Muhammad Ekramul Haque, ‘Formation of the Constitution and the legal system in Bangladesh: From 1971 to 1972: A critical legal analysis’ (2016) 27(1) Dhaka University Law Journal 41–56; Muhammad Ekramul Haque, ‘The Proclamation of Independence, 1971: Unilateral Declaration of Independence of Bangladesh’, Encyclopedia of Public International Law in Asia (Brill/Nijhoff, 2021) vol 3, 21.

  5. 5.

    For legitimacy of a constitution see Richard H Fallon Jr., ‘Legitimacy and the Constitution’ (2005) 118 Harvard Law Review 1787, 1794–1801. For a discussion on founding moments, see Richard Albert and Menaka Guruswamy, ‘Introduction: Mapping the Founding’ in Richard Albert, Menaka Guruswamy and Nishchal Basnyat (eds), Founding Moments in Constitutionalism (Hart Publishing 2019) 1–5.

  6. 6.

    Bangladesh Constitution 1972, preamble.

  7. 7.

    Günter Frankenberg, ‘Comparative constitutional law’ in Mauro Bussani and Ugo Mattei (eds), The Cambridge Companion to Comparative Law (Cambridge University Press 2012) 171, 186; Tom Ginsburg, ‘Introduction’ in Tom Ginsburg (ed), Comparative Constitutional Design (Cambridge University Press 2012) 2.

  8. 8.

    Tom Ginsburg and Rosalin Dixon, ‘Introduction’ in Tom Ginsburg and Rosalin Dixon (eds), Comparative Constitutional Law (Edward Elgar 2011) 1.

  9. 9.

    ibid.

  10. 10.

    ibid. 3.

  11. 11.

    For a discussion on adopting an optimal design based on comparative constitutional law, see ibid. 1.

  12. 12.

    For a discussion on constitutional design, see Günter Frankenberg, Comparative Constitutional Studies: Between magic and Deceit (Edward Elgar 2018) 27–62.

  13. 13.

    Kevin YL Tan and Ridwanul Hoque, Constitutional Foundings in South Asia (Hart Publishing 2021) 115. For a detailed study on autochthonous constitution, see Peter C Oliver, ‘Autochthonous Constitutions’, Max Planck Encyclopedia of Comparative Constitutional Law (2016) <https://oxcon.ouplaw.com/view/10.1093/law-mpeccol/law-mpeccol-e12?> accessed 12 August 2022.

  14. 14.

    Tania Groppi and Marie-Claire Ponthoreau, ‘Introduction’ in Tania Groppi and Marie-Claire Ponthoreau (eds), The Use of Foreign Precedents by Constitutional Judges (Hart Publishing 2013) 9.

  15. 15.

    Bangladesh, Constituent Assembly Debates (Gono Parishader Bitarka, Sarkari Biboroni) vol 2, 119–20 [per Syed Nazrul Islam].

  16. 16.

    ibid. 431–432 [per Dr. Kamal Hossain].

  17. 17.

    ibid. 270, 273,274,275, 502, 503, 520.

  18. 18.

    ibid. 503, 514, 515 [per Manabendra Narayan Larma and Suranjit Sen Gupta]. Generally speaking, the global model of constitutional rights allows restrictions on the rights. For details see Kai Möller, The Global Model of Constitutional Rights (OUP 2012) 1.

  19. 19.

    The Constitution-Bill was raised in the Constituent Assembly for consideration on 19 October 1972 and the general discussion on the Bill continued till 30 October 1972. See for details, Bangladesh (n 15) 102 and 445. This discussion has been compiled in the Constituent Assembly Debates (ibid 102–442), which included, inter alia, the discussion on the issue of the fundamental principles of state policy (ibid 122–23, 147–50, 154, 156–57, 161, 185, 196–97, 221–26, 236, 250, 259–62, 264–70, 280–83, 291, 293, 305, 309, 322–23, 325, 325–27, 333–34, 349, 353, 355, 357–58, 370, 372, 377–78, 384, 386–87, 391, 397, 399, 406, 408, 409–10, 413–14, 421, 435, 437, 439, 441–42; see Muhammad Ekramul Haque, ‘Constitutional Protection of Economic and Social Human Rights: Intention of the Constitution-Makers and Judicial Interpretations’ in Ridwanul Hoque and Rokeya Chowdhury (eds), A History of the Constitution of Bangladesh: The Founding, Development, and Way Ahead (Routledge 2022) (forthcoming); For a brief discussion on current judicial trend regarding enforcement of the fundamental principles of state policy see Muhammad Ekramul Haque, ‘Justiciability of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights under International Human Rights Law’ (2021) 32(1) Dhaka University Law Journal 39–54 <https://doi.org/10.3329/dulj.v32i1.57179> accessed 16 November 2022.

  20. 20.

    Bangladesh (n 15) 222; See Muhammad Ekramul Haque (n 19).

  21. 21.

    Bangladesh (n 15) 123, 153, 281, 282, 331, 333, 422, 437.

  22. 22.

    ibid. 463 [per Subed Ali], 123 [per Syed Nazrul Islam].

  23. 23.

    ibid. 192, 507.

  24. 24.

    The Constitution (Second Amendment) Act 1973 of 22 September 1973, ss 3 and 6.

  25. 25.

    Cheryl Saunders, ‘Judicial Engagements’ in Rosalind Dixon and Tom Ginsburg (eds), Comparative Constitutional Law in Asia (Edward Elgar 2014) 80–101; Rosalind Dixon and David Landan, Abusive Constitutional Borrowing (OUP 2021) 1; David Landau, ‘Judicial role and the limits of constitutional convergence in Latin America’ in Rosalind Dixon and Tom Ginsburg, Comparative Constitutional Law in Latin America (Edward Elgar 2017) 227–52; Ran Hirschl, ‘Judicial review and the politics of comparative citations: theory, evidence and methodological challenges’ in Erin F. Delaney and Rosalind Dixon (eds.), Comparative Judicial Review (Edward Elgar 2018) 403–22.

  26. 26.

    Kazi Mukhlesur Rahman v Bangladesh and Another (1974) 26 DLR (AD) 44.

  27. 27.

    Mohiuddin Farooque v Bangladesh (1997) 49 DLR (AD) 1.

  28. 28.

    Mohiuddin Farooque v Bangladesh (1996) 48 DLR 438.

  29. 29.

    ibid.

  30. 30.

    Tayeeb and others v Bangladesh (2015) 67 DLR (AD) 57.

  31. 31.

    Visakha v State of Rajsthan AIR 1997 SC 3011.

  32. 32.

    BNWLA v Bangladesh (2009) 29 BLD 415.

  33. 33.

    Bilkis Akhtar Hossain v Bangladesh (1997) 17 BLD 395.

  34. 34.

    Ruhul Shah v State of Bihar and another AIR 1983 SC 1086.

  35. 35.

    Nilabati Behara v State of Orissa AIR 1993 SC 1960.

  36. 36.

    R v Panel on Take-overs and Mergers (1987) QB 815.

  37. 37.

    Yaniv Roznai, Unconstitutional Constitutional Amendments: The Limits of Amendment Powers (OUP 2017) 47; also, Ridwanul Hoque, Judicial Activism in Bangladesh: A Golden Mean Approach (Cambridge Scholars Publishing 2011) 112–19; Ridwanul Hoque, ‘The Judicialization of Politics in Bangladesh’ in Mark Tushnet and Madhav Khosla (eds), Unstable Constitutionalism— Law and Politics in South Asia (Cambridge University Press 2015) 261, 278–85.

  38. 38.

    Ridwanul Hoque, ‘Constitutionalism and the Judiciary in Bangladesh’ in Sunil Khilnani et al. (eds.), Comparative Constitutionalism in South Asia (OUP 2014) 303, 316; Roznai (n 37) 48; Silvia Suteu, Eternity Clauses in Democratic Constitutionalism (OUP 2021) 138.

  39. 39.

    Richard Albert, Constitutional Amendments: Making, Breaking, and Changing Constitutions (OUP 2019) 194.

  40. 40.

    Suteu (n 38) 126.

  41. 41.

    ibid. 138–39.

  42. 42.

    Richard Albert and Bertil Emrah Oder, ‘The Forms of Unamendability’ in Richard Albert and Bertil Emrah Oder (eds), An Unamendable Constitution? Unamendability in Constitutional Democracies (Springer 2019) 1; Suteu (n 38) 126; Mark Tushnet, ‘Peasants with Pitchforks, and Toilers with Twitter: Constitutional Revolutions and the Constituent Power’ (2015) 13(3) International Journal of Constitutional Law 639.

  43. 43.

    Mark Tushnet has argued that the implementation of basic structure doctrine ‘may be quite difficult’, for details, Mark Tushnet, ‘Amendment theory and constituent power’ in Gary Jacobsohn and Miguel Schor (eds.), Comparative Constitutional Theory (Edward Elgar 2018) 317, 331. For details on eternal clauses in the Constitution of Bangladesh, see Ridwanul Hoque, ‘Eternal Provisions in the Constitution of Bangladesh: A Constitution Once and for All?’ in Richard Albert and Bertil Emrah Oder (n 42) 195–229.

  44. 44.

    For the discussion on more complexities see Suteu (n 38) 248; Po Jen Yap and Rehan Abeyratne, ‘Judicial self-dealing and unconstitutional constitutional amendments in South Asia’ (2021) 19(1) International Journal of Constitutional Law 127–48.

  45. 45.

    Mark Tushnet, Weak Courts, Strong Rights: Judicial Review and Social Welfare Rights in Comparative Constitutional Law (Princeton University Press 2008).

  46. 46.

    Richard Albert, ‘Introduction: The State of the Art in Constitutional Amendment’ in Richard Albert, Xenophon Contiades and Alkmene Fotiadou (eds), The Foundations and Traditions of Constitutional Amendment (Hart 2017) 1–2.

  47. 47.

    For an analysis of the term ‘positive legislator’, see Allan R. Brewer-Carías, Constitutional Courts as Positive Legislators: A Comparative Law Study (Cambridge University Press 2011) 5–192; for Bangladeshi context, see Md Rizwanul Islam, ‘Judges as legislators: benevolent exercise of powers by the higher judiciary in Bangladesh with not so benevolent consequences’ (2016) 16 Oxford University Commonwealth Law Journal 219–34.

  48. 48.

    For a discussion on the sixteenth amendment case see, Po Jen Yap and Abeyratne (n 43).

  49. 49.

    Naim Ahmed, ‘Litigating in the name of the people: Stresses and strains of the development of public interest litigation in Bangladesh’ (PhD Thesis, SOAS, London 1998); Sara Hossain et al. (eds), Public Interest Litigation in South Asia: Rights in Search of Remedies (University Press Ltd., Dhaka 1997).

  50. 50.

    On access to justice issues for women, see Atia Naznin, ‘Women’s Right to Access to Justice: The Role of Public Interest Litigation in Bangladesh’ (2021) 21(2) Australian Journal of Asian Law 99–117.

  51. 51.

    M Ehteshamul Bari, ‘Preventive detention laws in Bangladesh and their increased use during emergencies: a proposal for reform’ (2017) 17 Oxford University Commonwealth Law Journal 45–74.

  52. 52.

    Azhar U Bhuiyan, ‘The Doctrine of Public Trust: Its Judicial Invocation in Bangladesh and the Future Potentials’ (2021) 9(1) Jahangirnagar University Journal of Law 99–118.

  53. 53.

    Muhammad Ekramul Haque, ‘Use of International Law in Interpreting Constitutional Rights in Bangladesh’, Encyclopedia of Public International Law in Asia (Brill/Nijhoff, 2021) vol 3, 31.

  54. 54.

    Cambridge University Press Journal titled “Global Constitutionalism” has been pursuing the pathways of global constitutionalism, while Daniel Bonilla Maldonado (ed), Constitutionalism of the Global South (Cambridge University Press, 2013) and Philipp Dann et al. (eds), The Global South and Comparative Constitutional Law (OUP 2020) campaigns for constitutionalism in southern countries.

  55. 55.

    Khilnani et al. (n 38) and Kevin YL Tan and Ngoc Son Bui (eds), Constitutional Foundings in South Asia (Hart Publishing 2019); law journals published by Cambridge University Press, namely Asian Journal of International Law, Asian Journal of Comparative Law, and Asian Journal of Law and Society delineate the renewed interest in the Asian region.

  56. 56.

    M Steven Fish, ‘Stronger Legislature, Stronger Democracies’ (2006) 17(1) Journal of Democracy 5–20.

  57. 57.

    Tahmina Rahman, ‘Party System Institutionalization and Pernicious Polarization in Bangladesh’, (2019) 681(1) ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 173–92; Rounaq Jahan and Amundsen, The Parliament of Bangladesh: Representation and Accountability (Centre for Policy Dialogue and Chr. Michelsen Institute, Dhaka and Bergen, 2012).

  58. 58.

    Shafi Md Mostofa and DB Subedi, ‘Rise of Competitive Authoritarianism in Bangladesh’ (2021) 14(3) Politics and Religion 431–59; Inge Amundsen, ‘Democratic Dynasties? Internal Party Democracy in Bangladesh’ (2016) 22(1) Party Politics 49–58; Nizam Ahmed, ‘From Monopoly to Competition: Party Politics in the Bangladesh Parliament (1973–2001)’ (2003) 76(1) Pacific Affairs 68–69.

  59. 59.

    Rounaq Jahan, ‘The Parliament of Bangladesh: Representation and Accountability’, (2015) 21(2) Journal of Legislative Studies 250–69.

  60. 60.

    Kumarasingham, Harashan, ‘Eastminster – Decolonisation and State-building in British Asia’ in Harshan Kumarasingham (ed), Constitution- making in Asia, Decolonisation and State-building in the aftermath of the British Empire (Routledge 2016) 1; M Jashim Ali Chowdhury, ‘The “Westminster” Parliament of Bangladesh: A Critical Evaluation’ (PhD thesis at King’s College London 2022) 206–22.

  61. 61.

    Nizam Ahmed, Parliaments in South Asia: India, Pakistan and Bangladesh (Routledge 2020) 128–29; Steinar Askvik and Ishtiaq Jamil, ‘The Institutional Trust Paradox in Bangladesh’ (2013) 13(4) Public Organization Review 466–70; Muhammad A Hakim, ‘Bangladesh: The Beginning of the end of Militarised Politics?’ (1998) 7(3) Contemporary South Asia 283–300; Siegfried O Wolf, ‘Civil-Military Relations and Democracy in Bangladesh’ (2013) Spotlight South Asia (special Issue) 14–30; Aurel Croissant et al., Democratization and Civilian Control in Asia (Palgrave Macmillan, London 2013) 118–35.

  62. 62.

    The HCD declared the 5th amendment validating the martial law regimes during 1975–1978 ‘illegal and unconstitutional’ in Bangladesh Italian Marble Works Ltd v Government of Bangladesh (2006 Supl) BLT (HCD) 1 (writ petition No. 6016 of 2000, decision of 29 August 2005), which was upheld by the AD on 1 February 2010 in Civil Petition for Leave to Appeal Nos. 1044 and 1045 of 2009 in Khondhker Delwar Hossain v Bangladesh Italian Marble Works Ltd and Others (2010) 62 DLR (AD) 298; the 7th amendment validating the second martial law regime in the 1980s was declared ‘illegal and unconstitutional’ by the HCD in Siddique Ahmed v Bangladesh (2011) 33 BLD (HCD) 84; the 8th amendment decentralising the Judiciary was declared unconstitutional for being inconsistent with the basic structure of the Constitution by the AD in Anwar Hossain Chowdhury v Bangladesh (1989) BLD (AD) (special) 1; the 13th amendment introducing the non-political caretaker government was declared unconstitutional by the AD in Abdul Mannan Khan v Bangladesh (2012) 64 DLR (AD) 1; and the 16th amendment on the power of Parliament to remove superior court judges for proven incapacity or misconduct was declared unconstitutional by the HCD in Assaduzzaman Siddiqui and others v Bangladesh (writ Petition No. 9989 of 2014, decision of 5 May 2016) and upheld by the AD in Civil Appeal No. 6 of 2017 and decision of 3 July 2017, which is currently under review by the AD, Dhaka Tribune (24 December 2017) <https://archive.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/court/2017/12/24/review-petition-filed-16th-amendment-verdict> accessed 21 June 2022. For a list of ‘unconstitutional amendments’, see The Daily Star (Dhaka, 21 June 2021, Law & Our Rights) <https://www.thedailystar.net/law-our-rights/unconstitutional-amendments-1487263> accessed 21 June 2022.

  63. 63.

    Tom Ginsburg and Aziz Z Huq, ‘Assessing constitutional performance’ in Tom Ginsburg and Aziz Z. Huq (eds), Assessing constitutional performance (Cambridge University Press 2016) 3–38.

  64. 64.

    Martin Shapiro, ‘Parties and constitutional performance’ in Tom Ginsburg and Aziz Z Huq (eds), Assessing constitutional performance (Cambridge University Press 2016) 134–144.

  65. 65.

    Bangladesh (n 15) 129 [per Syed Nazrul Islam].

  66. 66.

    Tom Ginsburg and Alberto Simpser, ‘Introduction: Constitutions in Authoritarian Regimes’ in Tom Ginsburg and Alberto Simpser (eds), Constitutions in Authoritarian Regimes (Cambridge University Press 2014) 1.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Emeritus Professor of Law, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    M Rafiqul Islam

  2. Professor of Constittonal Law, Department of Law, University of Dhaka, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    Muhammad Ekramul Haque

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Emeritus Professor of Law, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    M Rafiqul Islam

  2. Department of Law, University of Dhaka, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    Muhammad Ekramul Haque

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Islam, M.R., Haque, M.E. (2023). Introduction: Fifty Years of the Constitution of Bangladesh: Progression and Transformation. In: Islam, M.R., Haque, M.E. (eds) The Constitutional Law of Bangladesh. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-2579-7_1

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