Bangladesh To Hold Constitutional Reforms Referendum On Same Day As Election In Feb 2026, Says Yunus

Last Updated:November 13, 2025, 17:03 IST

Bangladesh interim leader Muhammad Yunus delivered a televised address a day after incidents of violence were reported from across the country as it gears up for national elections

Bangladesh interim leader Muhammad Yunus announced that a national referendum on the July Charter will be held on the same day as the upcoming parliamentary elections. (Image: @ChiefAdviserGoB/X)

Amid the call for a nationwide lockdown by the Awami League on Thursday, Bangladesh interim leader Muhammad Yunus said the parliamentary elections will be held in a “festive atmosphere" in the first half of February next year.

Yunus delivered a televised address a day after incidents of violence were reported from across Bangladesh on Wednesday (November 12) as the country gears up for the national elections. A crude cocktail bomb blast occurred last night in front of Dhaka University, while a bus was set on fire in Tangra. 

In his address to the nation, Yunus announced that a national referendum on the July Charter (Constitution Reform) Implementation Order, 2025, will be held on the same day as the upcoming parliamentary elections. 

“The parliamentary elections will be held in a festive atmosphere in the first half of February. The referendum on the July Charter will be held on the same day as the parliamentary elections…" Yunus said.

He said the upcoming parliament will be bicameral – the  Upper House of 100 members will be formed based on the proportion of votes received by parties in the national elections, and constitutional amendments will require the approval of a majority of Upper House members.

The chief adviser said the decision was approved during the adviser’s council meeting earlier in the day, describing it as a major step toward implementing the reform roadmap that emerged from the anti-government protests last year, which led to the ouster of Sheikh Hasina.

“Having considered all matters, we have decided that the referendum will be organised on the same day as the upcoming national parliamentary election. This means that, like the national election, the referendum will also be held on the same day in the first half of February," he said in his televised address.

WHAT IS THE JULY NATIONAL CHARTER?

The July Charter was prepared by the Consensus Commission following months of dialogue with political parties and civil society groups.

The charter outlines a framework for constitutional and structural reforms aimed at strengthening democracy, accountability, and governance in Bangladesh after the student-led mass uprising in 2024.

According to Yunus, the referendum will ask citizens to approve the July Charter and its key reform proposals, which include the formation of a caretaker government and independent Election Commission during polling periods, the establishment of a bicameral parliament with an upper house of 100 members proportionally representing party vote shares, and the implementation of 30 consensus-based reforms on issues such as women’s representation, parliamentary oversight, judicial independence, local governance, and limiting the Prime Minister’s tenure.

If the majority of voters support the referendum, a Constitution Reform Council composed of newly elected parliamentary representatives will be formed to carry out the constitutional amendments within 180 working days of its first session. The new upper house will then be formed within 30 days of the reforms being completed. 

WHAT ELSE DID YUNUS SAY?

Highlighting the interim government’s progress over the past 15 months, Yunus said major reforms have been implemented to ensure judicial independence, strengthen the financial system, enhance transparency, and curb corruption.

He said Bangladesh’s economy has shown strong recovery, with exports, reserves, and foreign investment improving significantly. At the end of his address, he called for political unity ahead of the national elections warning that divisions among parties supportive of last year’s uprising could endanger the democratic transition.

“The unity that the countrymen forged in July 2024, standing tall against fascism in the face of death, must not be undermined by us, the living, by getting entangled in minor disagreements and petty disputes," he said. “Therefore, I hope that political parties will accept this decision in the greater interest of the nation. The nation will move towards a festive national election. Through this, we will enter a new Bangladesh. We have arrived at the threshold of building a new Bangladesh."

(With agency inputs)

News world Bangladesh To Hold Constitutional Reforms Referendum On Same Day As Election In Feb 2026, Says Yunus

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