Jatiya Nagorik Party (NCP) proposes electoral reforms including lowering voting age to 16 and election candidacy age to 23.
The announcement came during a press conference held at the party's temporary headquarters at capital's Bangla Motor on Saturday, March 22.
"We do not want such a large stake of the mass uprising to be deprived of voting just because of age. This rule exists in various countries, including Latin America and Austria," declared NCP joint-convener Sarwar Tushar, highlighting international precedents for the proposed change.
The party has outlined two distinct pathways to implement their reforms. The first approach involves using ordinances before elections, whilst the second proposes establishing a constituent assembly-elected legislature specifically tasked with constitutional reform.
During the press conference, Tushar acknowledged the party had missed the 13 March submission deadline for reform proposals, explaining: "Due to our recent emergence, we could not meet the deadline despite our best intentions." The party had apparently received a spreadsheet requesting their input on 5 March.
The NCP claims its proposals were developed through extensive consultation with experts from legal, judicial and parliamentary fields, as well as families of those martyred or injured in recent protests. "Many have said that their children should not be shot by police if they protest on the streets. So, we have tried to translate such wishes into reforms," Tushar added, providing context to the emotional impetus behind certain recommendations.
Regarding implementation specifics, Tushar clarified: "Reforms that are not related to the constitution can be made through ordinances or administrative measures before elections. However, we have some questions in those cases."
He noted that whilst the commission had identified 111 out of 166 reform proposals that could be implemented without discussion, the NCP believes "some of those recommendations require greater discussion."
The party reaffirmed its commitment to establishing a new democratic constitution, preferably through a constituent assembly election. "But we have also said that even if there is no constituent assembly, there should be a parliament elected as a constituent assembly legislature, meaning a legislature that will have the obligation to formulate the constitution," explained Tushar.
The NCP plans to submit its initial proposals to the National Consensus Commission at the National Parliament On Sunday, March 23, at 2pm. Tushar also raised concerns about omissions in the reform process, asking: "Why were the police and local reform commission reports not sent in the spreadsheet?" Discussions between the commission and the party are expected to continue after Eid celebrations.
