Senate of Bangladesh

The Senate of Bangladesh (Bengali: বাংলাদেশ অধিষদ) is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Bangladesh, the lower house being the House of the Nation. It is going through transition phase following the success of the 2026 Bangladeshi constitutional referendum on February 12, 2026,

Background

Since independence in 1971, Bangladesh has had a unicameral legislature, the Jatiya Sangsad. After the political reforms following the July Revolution, the National Consensus Commission developed the July Charter, which proposes changes to the constitution, governance, and election framework and creating a bicameral parliament with a Senate as the upper house.

Under the "July Charter implementation order" which has approved and gazetted in November 2025, the Senate proposal is formally included as part of the constitutional referendum question to be held alongside the 2026 general election.

Structure

Main article: July Charter

The Parliament of Bangladesh would be restructured into a bicameral legislature, consisting of two chambers:

Parliament of Bangladesh
House of the Nation	Senate
Lower House	Upper House
Serves as the principal legislative chamber. Members are elected from constituencies, primarily through the first-past-the-post system, along with reserved seats.	Proposed as a 100-member chamber elected through proportional representation based on national vote share in general elections. An additional five eminent citizens would be nominated by the President as independent members. Members would serve terms similar in length to those of the lower house. The Senate's primary role would be to review, amend, and delay legislation passed by the House of the Nation.

Proposed composition according to July Charter

Proposed composition according to the proportional representation, and election result.

Functions and powers

Main article: July Charter

Under the charter’s framework:

• Legislative review: The Senate would debate and suggest changes to bills passed by the lower house.
• Constitutional amendments: Any constitutional change would require approval by a majority of the Senate, adding a check to constitutional revisions.
• The Senate is not intended to duplicate the lower house’s functions but to act as a deliberative and revisory chamber.