Staff Correspondent 

Vice Chair of the National Consensus Commission Prof Ali Riaz on Sunday said the ongoing dialogue on state reforms must conclude by July 31 under any circumstances.

“We must finish this process (of reform discussion) by July 31 by any means. There is no alternative,” he said while presiding over the 19th-day session of the second-round dialogue between the NCC and political parties at the Foreign Service Academy in the capital.

Three issues — formation of a police commission, fundamental principles of the State and expansion of basic rights of the citizens — are being discussed on Sunday.

The NCC Vice Chair said there has been a consensus on 10 of the eighteen key agenda items discussed so far, although notes of dissent were also recorded in some cases. “Seven other issues have been extensively discussed but not yet resolved. We are close to making decisions on those,” he said.

Mentioning that one of them has been referred to the Commission for a final decision, he said adding that the Commission will announce its decision on that as soon as possible.

Besides, three other reform issues have not been placed for discussion yet, said Prof Riaz.

Talking about Sunday's agenda, he said three issues have been placed for discussion. Among them, the formation of a police commission is quite a new issue.

Reform dialogue resumes; formation of police commission among agenda

Prof Riaz said the issue of forming a police commission was not among the original 166 reform proposals sent to political parties for opinion.

“We are not including this issue to waste time,” he said, adding that both political parties and citizens have consistently questioned why the formation of a police commission is not being discussed during the dialogues.

In light of the police’s role during the 2024 July–August uprising and over the past 16 years, this demand for a police commission is legitimate. That’s why, following both formal and informal consultations, the proposal has been brought to the table, he said.

Noting that Sunday's discussion may need to continue till 10pm, he said, “We must wrap up the entire dialogue process by July 31. Only then may we allocate a separate day for signing the national charter.”

Some 30 political parties, including Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and the National Citizen Party (NCP), are participating in the second-round dialogue.

The NCC aims to finalise a unified position on approximately 20 core reform proposals by July 31 through consensus-building with political parties.

The second round of talks began on June 2, inaugurated by Chief Adviser and Commission Chairman Prof Muhammad Yunus.

Bangladesh's NCC struggles to reach consensus on key reform issues

The Commission, formed on February 15, 2025 under Prof Yunus’ leadership, was entrusted with building national consensus on key state reforms. It previously held first-round talks with political parties and alliances between March 20 and May 19.