Muktadesh Desk: BNP’s single candidate list may be finalized today, leaving possible seats for allied political parties. This list may be handed over to the responsible leaders; a formal announcement may also be made. For this, a meeting of the party’s national standing committee has been called at the chairperson’s political office in Gulshan today, Monday. The meeting will begin at 12:30 pm. A meeting with members of the organizational team will then be held. Party acting chairman Tarique Rahman will participate virtually in both meetings. However, the reason for this meeting – the standing committee or the organizational team members – has not been informed, according to relevant sources.
According to BNP internal sources, the BNP acting chairman has conducted at least 5 surveys in 300 seats to finalize the party’s candidate list over the past few months. After that, he takes the opinion of the organizational team. Wherever there seems to be a major crisis, he tries to resolve it by talking to potential candidates himself or through members of the standing committee. Most recently, Tarique Rahman held a meeting with potential candidates for 300 seats at the BNP chairperson’s political office on October 26 and 27.
Several potential candidates who attended the meeting said that the acting chairman of the party had told everyone to stay united.
The list of candidates will be announced through a press release. Tarique Rahman also instructed everyone to work for the person the party nominates.
BNP was supposed to announce a single candidate for more or less 200 seats in October. Salahuddin Ahmed, a member of the party’s national standing committee, also said the same. But the single candidate list was not published until yesterday, November 2.
After investigation, it was learned that on October 28, the National Consensus Commission formed by the interim government submitted its recommendations to the government for the implementation of the ‘July National Charter 2025’. But the charter signed by 25 political parties, including BNP, had many discrepancies with the charter submitted. Due to this, BNP was extremely angry. Tarique Rahman held two meetings with the leaders of the standing committee on Tuesday and Wednesday. BNP decided to monitor the situation there.
The leaders of the party’s standing committee believe that if there is any reaction on the streets regarding this, a third party can take the opportunity to sabotage the election. For this reason, the party’s position was announced at a press conference on the recommendations for implementing the July Charter. BNP leaders believe that for these reasons, a single candidate was supposed to be announced last month, but it was not possible. In this situation, the acting chairman of the party has called a meeting of the national standing committee today, Monday. According to relevant sources, the meeting may review the current situation in the country and finalize the single candidate list.
A member of the BNP standing committee said that a meeting of the standing committee has been called at the chairperson’s political office in Gulshan today at 12:30 pm. He expressed his inability to say more.
After the meeting of the standing committee, a meeting of the party’s organizational team has been called. Chittagong Divisional Organizing Secretary Mahebubur Rahman Shamim and Barisal Divisional Co-Organizing Secretary Akon Kuddusur Rahman, who were called to this meeting, said that they have been asked to be at the chairperson’s political office in Gulshan today at 2:30 pm.
When asked, BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said that the single candidate list may be announced soon. However, the specific date has not been finalized. According to party sources, party acting chairman Tarique Rahman has called Salahuddin Ahmed, a member of the party’s standing committee, to London on an urgent basis. However, the reason for calling him there is not known.
Some of BNP’s central leaders believe that Tarique Rahman may have detailed discussions with Salahuddin Ahmed about the July charter. An important leader of the party said that after August 5, Jamaat-backed people have been appointed to important positions in the government. In this situation, if the national parliament elections are held, BNP has the possibility of forming the government in terms of popularity. In that case, it is natural for identified Jamaat supporters to be excluded from the administration. Postponing the elections means maintaining Jamaat’s strong position in the administration. In this situation, BNP is in some trouble due to the recommendations made by the National Consensus Commission on the implementation of the 48-point proposal, including constitutional reform, in Bangladesh, but is trying to keep a cool head so that the elections are not postponed under any circumstances. This may also be discussed with Salahuddin Ahmed.
Senior member of the BNP National Standing Committee Dr. Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain said that what the Consensus Commission has done has put the entire nation in trouble, not just the BNP. According to him, the government should make amendments to the commission’s recommendations and decide on it. But he expressed his inability to comment on whether the BNP has been pressured or politically in trouble due to this strategy of the government or the commission.
Saiful Haque, general secretary of the BNP’s like-minded political party, the Revolutionary Workers Party, said that there is discomfort and political anxiety among the BNP and like-minded parties regarding the commission’s recommendations as to who the commission has done this for. However, this is only a recommendation. The government will take the decision. After seeing the government’s decision, we, including BNP, will decide what to do next.
Some political analysts say that there is nothing wrong or in trouble for BNP. Because the party has already made its position clear on the July Charter. At an event last Saturday, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said, “Our words are very clear.”