Asking PM, speaker to apologise not proper

"Such statements are not appropriate, nor do they conform to parliamentary norms. There should not be any repetition of such statements in future," said Akhtar Hamid Siddiqui while presiding over parliament session after the Maghrib break last night.

The Chair's ruling came just a day after the main opposition Awami League (AL) demanded apologies from the prime minister and the speaker for their recent remarks as the precondition for returning to the House. The AL felt offended at Prime Minister Khaleda Zia's declaring a BNP newcomer an 'undeclared lawmaker' in a Faridpur constituency and Speaker Jamiruddin Sircar's observation on effective running of the House in the absence of the main opposition.

A Jamaat-e-Islami lawmaker took the floor on a point of order and pleaded for a ruling from the speaker on the issue.

Shah Md Ruhul Kuddus, the Jamaat MP, expressed outrage at the AL's threat of non-participation in the parliament session and also in the upcoming conference of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) in Dhaka.

Kuddus said, "The AL lawmakers remained absent from 70 sittings in a row and joined the 71st to keep their membership."

In his ruling, the Chair termed the CPA conference billed for an October 4 start very important for Bangladesh and hoped the main opposition party would take part in it considering the prestige of the country.