History of The Office
The role of the president has been changed thrice since emergence of Bangladesh in 1971. Bangladesh started its journey at the beginning of the Bangladesh war of independence from Pakistan on April 10 and 17, 1971, when Bangladesh Forces and Bangladesh Government in exile respectively was established. After the oath ceremony was held at Meherpur, Kushtia, the government in exile set up its headquarters at 8 Theatre Road, in Calcutta, India. The first Bangladesh President to take oath of office was Syed Nazrul Islam with Tajuddin Ahmad as the first Prime Minister. After the war ended, the government of India installed Sheikh Mujibur Rahman of the Awami League in the office of the Prime Minister. Later in 1973 under a new constitution, the set up began under a parliamentary system of government where the president was a nominal head of the state while all the executive powers were vested in the prime minister. In 1974, the government under Prime Minister Sheikh Mujibur Rahman switched from parliamentary to a single party presidential system banning all press, political parties and activities under the State of Emergency. It was reverted to democratic parliamentary system in 1991 when Khaleda Zia became the first female prime minister of Bangladesh through parliamentary election.
The President is the head of state, a largely ceremonial post elected by the parliament. However the President's powers are substantially expanded during the tenure of a caretaker government, which is responsible for the conduct of elections and transfer of power. The officers of the caretaker government must be non-partisan and are given three months to complete their task. This transitional arrangement is an innovation that was pioneered by Bangladesh in its 1991 election and then institutionalised in 1996 through its 13th constitutional amendment.
In the caretaker government, the president has control over the Ministry of Defence, the authority to declare a state of emergency, and the power to dismiss the Chief Adviser and other members of the caretaker government. Once elections have been held and a new government and Parliament are in place, the president's powers and position revert to their largely ceremonial role. The Chief Adviser and other advisers to the caretaker government must be appointed within 15 days after the current Parliament expires.
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