The 'July National Charter 2025' was prepared after discussions with political parties and experts in three phases for about eight months with the aim of reforming various sectors of the country.
The historic July Charter signing ceremony was held at the South Plaza of the National Parliament Building on Friday (October 17) afternoon. Chief Advisor Professor Muhammad Yunus, Vice-Chairman and members of the National Consensus Commission, and representatives of various political parties signed the charter on this day.
The issue of the formation of the upper house of parliament has been raised in Article 18 of the July Charter. The formation of the upper house states:
(a) 100 (one hundred) members of the upper house will be elected through the proportional representation (PR) system of the votes obtained in the elections to the lower house.
(b) The term of the upper house will be 5 (five) years from the date of taking the oath. However, if the lower house is dissolved for any reason, the upper house will automatically dissolve.
(c) Political parties shall publish the list of candidates for the Upper House at the same time as they publish the final list of candidates for the Lower House general election. The list shall include at least 10 (ten) percent women candidates.
In addition, Article 19 outlines the responsibilities and roles of the Upper House. They are:
(a) Review the proposed legislation of the Lower House. The Upper House shall not have the power to make laws; however, it may propose legislation to the Lower House on any matter of national importance. Except for money bills and confidence votes passed by the Lower House, all bills shall be presented to the Upper House for approval. The Upper House shall not be able to permanently hold any bill. If the Upper House holds any bill for more than a maximum of 2 (two) months, it shall be deemed approved by the Upper House.
(b) If the Upper House approves a bill, the bill passed by both Houses shall be sent to the President for assent.
(c) In cases where the Upper House sends the Bill to the Lower House for reconsideration with recommendations for amendments, the Lower House may accept or reject the amendments proposed by the Upper House in whole or in part.
(d) If the Bill returned by the Upper House is passed again in the Lower House session, the Bill shall be sent for the President's assent without the approval of the Upper House.
(e) Any Bill relating to the amendment of the Constitution shall be passed by a simple majority of the Upper House.
