NCP to skip July Charter signing unless its legal basis is guaranteed: Nahid

The National Citizen Party (NCP) said it will not attend the July Charter signing ceremony unless it is first informed of the legal basis of the charter and the process of its formalisation, reports bdnews24.com.

NCP Convener Nahid Islam made the announcement at a press conference at the party's temporary office in the capital's Banglamotor on Thursday morning.

"The event scheduled for tomorrow (Friday) is the signing of the July Charter. Such a signing is a formality before the issuance of the order that we are talking about -- the legal basis," Nahid said.

"The July Charter has already been drafted. A referendum will be held on the basis of that constitutional order and the entire process will proceed."

He said the party had previously called for giving legal force to the July Declaration, but that did not happen.

"There has been a lot of deception in the text and wording of the July Declaration. That wasn't shown to us. What was shown earlier was changed a lot during the reading of the declaration and many words of compromise were introduced," he said.

"As a result, we don't want to bear witness to another incident that has no meaning. If we sign the charter without the certainty of a legal basis and order, it will be worthless. We are not sure on what basis the government will issue the order afterwards. We will not be a part of the July Charter signing ceremony until this matter is confirmed."

The signing ceremony is scheduled for Friday at the South Plaza of the national parliament building, with leaders from more than 30 political parties expected to attend.

Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus said the consensus on the July Charter among Bangladeshi politicians was 'making the impossible possible'.

On Tuesday evening, a letter signed by Consensus Commission Vice Chairman Ali Riaz sent the final version of the July National Charter to 33 political parties and alliances.

Nahid alleged that the interim government had "resorted to deception" in drafting the July Declaration, despite the NCP's participation in the process.

His remarks also hinted at the possible formation of a new constitution, though he said that could only be done by a Constituent Assembly formed after the next national election.