Barrister Kaisar Kamal, the Acting Speaker of the Jatiya Sangsad, will administer the oath of office to Bangladesh’s 23rd president. As current Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed is serving as Acting President, the Law Ministry has deemed the Acting Speaker constitutionally appropriate to administer the oath to the newly elected president.

The Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs gave its legal opinion on the matter on Thursday after the Cabinet Division sought clarification. Joint Secretary A A Awwal confirmed the matter to the media.

He said, “We have informed the concerned department in our opinion that there will be no legal violation if Acting Speaker Barrister Kaisar Kamal administers the oath.”

According to the Law Ministry’s opinion, current Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed is performing the duties of Acting President under Article 54 of the Constitution. As a result, under Article 74(3), the duties of the Speaker are being performed by the Deputy Speaker.

The ministry further stated that since the Deputy Speaker is currently performing all the duties of the Speaker in accordance with the Constitution, he is also constitutionally authorized to administer the oath to the newly elected president.

Meanwhile, voting in Bangladesh’s 23rd presidential election began at 2pm Thursday at the Jatiya Sangsad. Members of Parliament will be able to cast their votes until 5pm.

The swearing-in ceremony for the newly elected president is scheduled to take place tomorrow, Friday (August 21).