ABSTRACT

Marking the 50th anniversary of Bangladesh's Constitution, this book gauges its development from 1972 to 2022, focusing on its foundational goals, performances, and current challenges.

The collection, presenting diverse but issue-specific chapters, shows how the people, political parties and leaders, and constitutional and legal institutions interact with each other in advancing, breaking, and remaking their Constitution. It examines the local context, parliamentary history, and interpretive tools adopted by the Supreme Court in understanding the Constitution as well as the future prospect of constitutional politics and practices. The work brings together legal professionals and constitutional law scholars to encapsulate the panorama of the country’s constitutional evolution. The authors look back to the history of constitution-making, to reflect critically on the present in light of the founding goals, spirits, and aspirations and with a view to offering a forward-looking and resilient vision of constitutionalism in Bangladesh.

The book will be of interest to researchers, academics, and policy-makers working in the areas of comparative constitutional law and politics and South Asian Studies.

part I|47 pages

The founding of the Constitution, competing legal norms, and identity building

chapter 2|15 pages

The emergence of Bangladesh's legal system

Revolutionary legality and a new rule of recognition

chapter 4|16 pages

Secularism and Islam as the state religion

Conflict or coexistence?

part II|52 pages

Constitutionalism, rule of law, and judicial review

chapter 5|23 pages

Rule of law within the constitutional scheme

A judicial perspective

chapter 7|15 pages

Judicial review and the separation of powers

Is one contingent upon the other?

part III|51 pages

Political parties, executive authority, and parliament under the constitutional scheme

chapter 9|16 pages

Parliament of Bangladesh

Constitutional position and contributions

chapter 10|17 pages

Political parties in the process of constitution-making and amending

From multi-party to one-party dominant politics?

part IV|62 pages

Social justice, inclusion, and the protection of rights

chapter 11|12 pages

Constitutional protection of economic and social human rights

Intention of the constitution-makers and judicial interpretations

chapter 14|17 pages

Constitutionalism interrupted or constitutionalism absent?

The divergence of Constitution and politics in Bangladesh