Parliament passes 31 bills to adopt, amend or repeal interim govt ordinances

Parliament approved a total of 31 bills related to ordinances issued during the interim government’s tenure (August 2024 to February 2026) on Thursday. 

The bills either adopted, amended or repealed the ordinances promulgated during that period.

Of the 31 bills, 27 retained the provisions of the interim government’s ordinances, while four were passed with repeals or modifications.

Among the repealed ordinances, the House passed the National Human Rights Commission (Repeal and Re-introduction) Bill, 2026, reinstating the National Human Rights Commission Act, 2009. 

The Human Organ Transplantation Bill, 2026 was also approved to repeal and amend the existing law. The other two repealed ordinances include the Supreme Court Secretariat (Repeal) Bill, 2026 and the Supreme Court Judges Appointment (Repeal) Bill, 2026.

The bills were presented in Parliament by the relevant ministers or state ministers and were passed by voice vote under the Speaker’s guidance.

The 27 bills retaining the interim government’s ordinances cover a wide range of sectors. Notable examples include the National Sports Council (Amendment) Bill, 2026, Bangabandhu Krirasebi Kalyan Foundation (Amendment) Bill, 2026, Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (Amendment) Bill, 2026, Public Procurement (Amendment) Bill, 2026, Bangladesh Labour (Amendment) Bill, 2026, and Legal Aid Services (Amendment) Bill, 2026. Other important bills include amendments related to local government, science and technology, forestry, telecommunications and housing.

The parliamentary special committee, tasked with reviewing the 133 ordinances issued during the interim government, recommended the adoption of 98 bills in their original form and 15 in amended form. 

About 20 ordinances, including those concerning the Anti-Corruption Commission, the Police Commission, the National Human Rights Commission, and the Referendum, were not recommended for approval. Four ordinances, such as the Supreme Court Judge Appointment and Supreme Court Secretariat ordinances, were allowed to lapse.

The committee submitted its report to Parliament on April 2, guiding the passage of the current batch of bills.

SH