The Constitution Reform Commission has recommended renaming the "People’s Republic of Bangladesh" as the "Democratic Republic of Bangladesh" and replacing the term "Republic" with "Civic Polity" in applicable parts of the Constitution.

The proposals were included in a report submitted to Chief Adviser Professor Dr. Muhammad Yunus on Wednesday (January 15). 

The commission, led by Professor Ali Riaz, outlined several changes aimed at modernizing the Constitution.

Currently, the Constitution is titled ‘The Constitution of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh’. The commission proposed rephrasing it as with the consent of the people, we adopt this Constitution as the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Bangladesh.

Additionally, the commission suggested replacing the term "Bengali" with "Bangladeshi" for citizenship, eliminating the clause that defines Bangladeshis as "Bengali as a nation," and recommended the statement, Bangladeshi citizens will be known as ‘Bangladeshi.’

The report also proposed removing three of the existing four fundamental principles of state policy—nationalism, socialism, and secularism—while retaining democracy. The commission recommended replacing them with five new principles: equality, human dignity, social justice, pluralism, and democracy.

The English version of the Constitution will retain the terms "Republic" and "People’s Republic of Bangladesh," according to the recommendations.

BDST: 2125 HRS, JAN 15, 2025
MSK