Tulip Siddiq gave a new definition of political commitment

Tasmiah Nuhiya Ahmed of DOT  : 
The European Union is an economic and political partnership which involves 28 European countries. It began after World War Two to foster economic co-operation, with the idea that countries which trade together were more likely to avoid going to war with each other.
In the year 2016, an issue grabbed everyone’s attention which is known as Brexit. A referendum was held on 23 June, 2016 to decide whether the UK should leave or remain in the European Union. The referendum turnout was 71.8%, with more than 30 million people voting. The UK is due to leave the European Union on 29 March, 2019 – it’s the law, regardless of whether there is a deal with the EU or not. Stopping Brexit would require a change in the law in the UK. The European Court of Justice ruled on December 10, 2018 that the UK could cancel the Article 50 Brexit process without the permission of the other 27 EU members, and remain as a member of the EU on its existing terms, provided the decision followed a “democratic process.”
After months of negotiation, the UK and EU agreed a Brexit deal. It comes in two parts. A 585-page withdrawal agreement- which is a legally-binding text that sets the terms of the UK’s divorce from the EU. It covers how much money the UK owes the EU – an estimated £39bn – and what happens to UK citizens living elsewhere in the EU and EU citizens living in the UK. It also proposes a method of avoiding the return of a physical Northern Ireland border. The other part of this Breaxit deal is a 26-page statement on future relations. This is not legally-binding and sketches out the kind of long-term relationship the UK and EU want to have in a range of areas, including trade, defence and security.
However, Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal has been rejected by 230 votes – the largest defeat for a sitting government in history. MPs voted by 432 votes to 202 to reject the deal, which sets out the terms of Britain’s exit from the EU on 29 March.
The defeat is a huge blow for Mrs May, who has spent more than two years hammering out a deal with the EU. “It is clear that the House does not support this deal,” Mrs May told Parliament, moments after the result was announced.
The plan was aimed at bringing about an orderly departure from the EU on 29 March, and setting up a 21-month transition period to negotiate a free trade deal.
In this whole episode on Brexit vote, a heavily pregnant Labour MP Tulip Siddiq stole the show. Among the crowd into the House of Commons for the crunch Brexit vote, there was one Labour MP, Tulip Siddiq, who was heavily-pregnant. She was in a blue dress, sitting in a wheelchair, turning up to take part in the democratic process. She is the daughter of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s sister Sheikh Rehana . She was due to have a Caesarian section on Tuesday, but she delayed the operation until Thursday so that she can vote on the withdrawal agreement between London and Brussels.
Ms Siddiq said: “If my son enters the world even one day later than the doctors advised, but it’s a world with a better chance of a strong relationship between Britain and Europe, then that’s worth fighting for.”
Ms Siddiq said she did not trust the system after Tory chairman Brandon Lewis was accused of breaking the system when he voted on a Trade Bill, despite being paired with Lib Dem Jo Swinson, who was on maternity leave. He later apologised for making an “honest mistake”.
“If the pairing system is not honoured, there’s nothing I can do, and it’s going to be a very close vote,” said Ms Siddiq.
The level of commitment and devotion shown by Ms. Siddiq sets an example of how a member of parliament should act for upholding democracy. She gave a new definition of political commitment.
In Bangladesh, after the 11th parliamentary election held on December 30 , two hundred and eighty nine lawmakers-elects took oaths at the Bangladesh Parliament Secretariat on 3rd January. The whole nation is proud today of Tulip Siddiq. We hope our parliament members who took oath few days back will also be able to prove their commitment like Tulip Siddiq in upholding democracy in Bangladesh.
Tasmiah Nuhiya Ahmed is Executive Editor, Daily Our Time