Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has explained in parliament why ruling-party women MPs from reserved seats have been given responsibility for overseeing development work in opposition MPs’ constituencies, saying the government is proceeding according to its own rules. He gave the explanation on Wednesday during the question hour, in reply to a supplementary question from Mir Ahmad Bin Quasem, the Jamaat-e-Islami MP for Dhaka-14, at a sitting chaired by Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad.
The opposition member said: “I have learned from a widely circulated newspaper that the honourable prime minister has given ruling-party women MPs the responsibility of overseeing development in opposition MPs’ areas. It is also said these women MPs will be able to issue DO letters for such development.” A report to that effect was published in Samakal on 7 June, which said a meeting of the BNP’s parliamentary party the previous day had assigned the party’s 36 reserved-seat women MPs responsibility for the 79 seats won by the opposition. The MP, known as Barrister Arman, said: “From this information a confusion has arisen among us — is this work being given to them so that we opposition MPs will have no right over development activity in our own areas? Was this directive given to ensure that? The honourable prime minister will please make it clear to us.”
In reply, the prime minister said women elected as MPs from both the ruling party and the opposition have no designated seats under the constitution or the law: “They have no specific seat the way you or I do. Quite naturally, on the basis of our political and organisational structure, we have designated some areas for them from the party’s side, where they will work.” Addressing Barrister Arman, the head of government said: “In your constituency, as a public representative you have every right to play a role in your area’s development. Since this parliament has elected the women members, they naturally have the same right. We are quite naturally proceeding according to the government’s rules. If there is anything I can do to help with any development matter in your area, let me know.”
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report