The National Assembly has passed the ‘July People’s Uprising Protection and Liability Ordinance-2026, which will determine the legal protection and liability structure of the participants of the recent political movement. The bill was approved in the first session on Wednesday.
The bill was presented by Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed in Parliament. However, Hasnat Abdullah, a member of parliament from Comilla-4 constituency, objected to the discussion. In his speech, he questioned some sections of the law, especially the interpretation of the word ‘commission’ and the definition of criminal activity.
The bill referred to the National Human Rights Commission as the relevant authority. Critics say this could lead to a vagueness in determining the difference between political movement and personal interest-related violence. Hasnat Abdullah feared that if the actions of different natures were evaluated under the same legal framework, it could cause complications in the judicial process.
Highlighting the need for the bill, the government said a clear framework was essential to determining accountability in post-adduagation and ensuring the legal protection of the participants.
The session was presided over by Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed. The passage of the law sees an important policy move in the context of political turmoil, although the debate over its practical implementation may continue.