DHAKA, Jun 18: Bangladesh parliament speaker on Thursday said MPs need not bow their heads while entering or exiting the House, nearly three weeks after an opposition MP deemed the practice to be "anti-Islamic".
"You will pay respect to the Speaker's chair maintaining the practice of your respective faiths," Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad said.
On June 6, Jamaat-e-Islami lawmaker Mujibur Rahman opposed the practice of bowing when entering the chamber saying it was contradictory to Islamic beliefs and tantamount to a serious "sin".
The speaker said that during scrutiny of House rules, he found that lawmakers were relieved from bowing their heads under a 2006 amendment to the parliamentary Rules of Procedure.
The amendment occurred when the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-led alliance government was in power with Jamaat being its main partner.
Ahmed said the amended rule was adopted on September 26 that year following a report of the parliamentary standing committee. Under the previous rules, bowing their heads was mandatory for MPs.
"A member shall show respect to the Chair while entering or leaving the chamber and when taking or leaving his seat under the amended Rule 267(1) of the Rules of Procedure," he said.
Despite the amendment, most lawmakers during subsequent sessions continued to practice the tradition while some were seen waving their right hand as a gesture of respect.
The speaker's ruling came a day after BNP MP Zainul Abdin Farroque reminded the speaker of the Jamaat lawmaker's plea and urged him to resolve the issue. (PTI)
