Third Constitution (Third Amendment) Act 1974
The words added to Article 2(a) remain in the Constitution. bdlaws notes that their effect depends on a gazette notification under section 4 of the Act. The enclave exchange took place on 31 July 2015.
Partition in 1947 left scattered enclaves of India inside East Pakistan and of East Pakistan inside India. Article 2 defined Bangladesh's territory as the land that formed East Pakistan before 26 March 1971.
In 1974 Bangladesh and India signed an agreement to exchange enclaves and fix parts of the boundary. Transferring territory needed a change to Article 2, and a citizen's writ against the agreement reached the Appellate Division.
The Constitution (Third Amendment) Act 1974, Act LXXIV of 1974, was enacted in November 1974. Section 3 added words to Article 2(a) bringing in the included territories and excluding the excluded territories named in the Act.
Section 4 of the Act made the change depend on a gazette notification. The bdlaws text still notes that the effectiveness of the added words is subject to that notification.
India ratified the agreement in 2015, and the enclaves were exchanged on 31 July 2015. Former Indian enclaves came under Bangladesh's jurisdiction under Article 2, and land records for them were then prepared.
In plain English
Constitution (Third Amendment) Act 1974
The Third Amendment changed Article 2, which defines the territory of Bangladesh, to give effect to the land boundary agreement of 1974 between Bangladesh and India. Article 2(a) now says the territory includes the areas referred to as included territories in the Third Amendment Act and excludes those referred to as excluded territories. The agreement provided for exchanging enclaves and settling parts of the land boundary. Bangladesh amended its Constitution in 1974, but the exchange did not happen until 2015, after India ratified the agreement.
The amended text is still in force.
Background
Partition in 1947 left a complex boundary between India and what became East Pakistan, including many enclaves of each country inside the other. In 1974 the governments of Bangladesh and India signed an agreement on the land boundary and on exchanging enclaves. Because Article 2 defined Bangladesh's territory by reference to East Pakistan, giving up or gaining territory required a constitutional amendment. A writ challenging the agreement was brought in the Supreme Court in 1974, and the First Parliament then passed the Third Amendment.
What changed
What the Third Amendment changed, article by article
Article 2
Third Amendment(a) the territories which immediately before the Proclamation of Independence on the 26th day of March, 1971 constituted East Pakistan;
(a) the territories which ... constituted East Pakistan and the territories referred to as included territories in the Constitution (Third Amendment) Act, 1974, but excluding the territories referred to as excluded territories in that Act; and
Section 3 substituted the new words for the semi-colon and word ";and". bdlaws notes that its effectiveness is subject to gazette notification under section 4 of the Act.
What happened next
What happened to the Third Amendment next
The Third Amendment has not been challenged in its own right, and its text remains in Article 2. Before it was passed, the agreement itself was challenged in Kazi Mukhlesur Rahman v Bangladesh, where the Appellate Division treated the challenge as premature, as reported. The agreement was not carried out for four decades because India did not ratify it until 2015.
The enclaves were exchanged on 31 July 2015, and later litigation, such as a 2018 writ on land records, treats the former Indian enclaves as part of Bangladesh under Article 2.
Timeline
- Land boundary agreement signed with India
- Third Amendment enacted, as reported
- Enclaves exchanged
- Gazette notice for surveying former enclaves
Landmark cases
How the courts have read the Third Amendment
Appellate Division · 1974
Kazi Mukhlesur Rahman v Bangladesh
26 DLR (AD) 44
A challenge to the 1974 land boundary agreement, which the court considered premature, as reported.
High Court Division · 2025
Md Touhidul Islam v Government of Bangladesh (Writ Petition No. 13575 of 2018)
Concerned land records for former Indian enclaves that came under Bangladesh's jurisdiction under Article 2 after the 2015 exchange; the rule was discharged on 21 August 2025.
Questions
Third Amendment: frequently asked questions
Why did the 1974 boundary agreement need a constitutional amendment?
Article 2 defines Bangladesh's territory as the land that formed East Pakistan before 26 March 1971. Exchanging enclaves meant gaining some territory and giving up other territory, so Article 2(a) had to refer to the included and excluded territories named in the Third Amendment Act.
When were the enclaves actually exchanged?
On 31 July 2015, more than forty years after the agreement. Bangladesh amended its Constitution in 1974, but India ratified the agreement only in 2015.
Is the Third Amendment still in force?
Yes. The words added to Article 2(a) remain in the official text. bdlaws notes that their effectiveness is subject to a gazette notification under section 4 of the Act.
Sources
- bdlaws: The Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh (full text with footnotes)
- Banglapedia: Constitutional Amendments
- The Daily Star: 50 Years of Bangladesh Constitution in a nutshell
- Supreme Court of Bangladesh: Writ Petition No. 13575 of 2018 (judgment of 21 August 2025)
This guide explains the Constitution for general understanding. It is not legal advice. Constitutional reform proposals under discussion in 2026 are described as proposals until enacted.
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