Parliament sits Mar 12, speaker vote first order

The first session of the 13th Parliament will convene on Mar 12, when lawmakers will also elect the speaker and the deputy speaker to formally set the legislative machinery in motion, reports bdnews24.com.

On Sunday, Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed disclosed the date while at the Secretariat after a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.

A day earlier, the home minister had told bdnews24.com that the first session could be held on Mar 12 or a couple of days earlier.

Explaining the process, Salahuddin said discussions at the meeting focused on when parliament could be summoned.

"We discussed when parliament could be convened. It has been determined that the proclamation to summon the session must be issued 15 days before it begins.

"The summary will go from the Parliament Secretariat through the Prime Minister's Office to the president," he said.

The president will then formally call the session upon the prime minister's advice, the minister added.

"We also discussed what the agenda of that session would include."

He said the election of the speaker and deputy speaker will take place during the sitting.

"Ordinances issued during the interim government will be presented in accordance with parliamentary practice.