Dhaka, Nov 4 : With Bangladesh's national election scheduled for February 2026, the National Citizen Party (NCP) has displayed its unwillingness for polls without securing complete impunity for its political coup during last year's July uprising. The actions and remarks of leaders in the NCP exposed the party's growing insecurity in the political game.

Its consistent demand for electoral reform ' to have national elections based on proportional representation (also favoured by Islamist parties) ' reflect its awareness of lack of popular support.

The optimism of the July Uprising quickly faded as witnessed in the growing political chaos following the exit of former Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina which revealed the country's democracy deficit.

Now with the Bangladesh Election Commission (EC) denying the 'shapla' symbol to NCP, the party's ego is shattered, as members are threatening to delay the election if they are denied its electoral symbol. NCP is now open to both the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the radical Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami for political alliances, notwithstanding the war of words it has been engaging in with both and presenting itself before Bangladesh as the 'new' alternative. Truly, NCP's 'revolutionary' emergence has been short-lived and is perhaps now reaching its endgame.

Given the political vacuum as a result of Hasina's ousting and political ostracisation of Awami League - that remains as Bangladesh's largest political party - the country witnessed two political developments. This includes the resurgence of Islamists on the political stage and the growing fissures between former allies BNP and Jamaat.

A new political platform was established in September last year known as the Jatiyo Nagorik Committee (National Student Committee), by prominent student leaders of the July Uprising. The intent behind the formation of this platform was to replace the 'existing fascist political settlement' with a 'democratic one' and become the ideological vanguard of the July Uprising.

The committee felt that only through the establishment of a new political party, the political aspiration of the July Uprising can be achieved. This paved the way for the establishment of a student-led political party ' Jatiyo Nagorik Party (National Citizen Party) ' that announced its formation on February 28, 2025 with a centrist and pluralist ideological approach that aims to establish a "second republic" in Bangladesh. It also announced its expectation to contest for all 300 seats in the national (Jatiya Sangsad) election.

Just six months within this year, a total of 32 NCP leaders resigned from the party citing internal conflict, misconduct and dissatisfaction with leadership. Moreover, its NCP's student wing ' Bangladesh Gonotantrik Chhatra Sangsad (BGCS) ' faced heavy defeats and failed to secure central posts in recent student union elections of Dhaka, Jahangirnagar, Chattogram and Rajshahi University. The surveys on voter preference since early this year also denote the same trend.

A nationwide survey by Innovision Consulting held this March reported that despite appeal among young voters, the voters' preference for NCP stands at an overall five per cent. Another survey by the BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD) in July showed only a marginal 2.8 per cent increase from two. The latest People's Election Pulse Survey in September, preference for NCP stands at 4.9 per cent. Surprisingly, NCP's main rival, Awami League, despite the ban, continues to enjoy a higher voters' preference percentage than the NCP as per these surveys.

NCP drew controversies even before its launch. The selection of the initial 10 core members of the NCP was criticised for its lack of inclusivity and lacking a democratic process. Moreover, the inclusion of leaders from the Jatiyo Nagorik Committee having past ties with Jamaat's student wing Islami Chhatra Shibir in the party created another round of uproar, leading to their voluntary withdrawal. Another controversy followed when a recognised activist of LGBTQ community was reported to secure a position in the party's central committee, sparking debate and dissatisfaction even among NCP leaders, eventually leading to the member's exclusion. Quite early on, the new party's approach to present an alternative as the most inclusive party and its own internal contradictions reflected NCP's own ideological challenges.

Led by students under the banner of Students Against Discrimination (SAD), the 2024 July Uprising was popularised as Bangladesh's 'second liberation'. The movement ' largely composed of anti-Hasina forces ' championed for an inclusive, plural, just and democratic Bangladesh. Thus, Bangladesh's political landscape not only changed after August 5 2024, but also initiated a new debate on which direction the country's politics should head.

The interim government was established on August 8, just days after Hasina fled the country. The main coordinators of the Students Against Discrimination (SAD) invited Muhammad Yunus to head the interim government as the Chief Advisor. Three prominent leaders of SAD ' Nahid Islam, Mahfuj Alam and Asif Muhammad ' also became advisors in the interim government representing students. Thus, SAD played a significant role in legitimising Yunus' administration, installing it the responsibility of implementing reforms and conducting a free and fair election.

Amidst anticipation of who will be part of the NCP's central leadership, Nahid Islam resigned from its advisory position in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to become the chief convenor of the party. Islam's joining the NCP was not viewed favourably by other political parties who accused the interim government of helping for the establishment of a 'King's Party' under its schemes of endless reforms rather than announcing a clear election roadmap. NCP's formation and the Chief Advisor Yunus's soft spot for the student political party, also put its own neutrality in question. Political parties like Gono Odhikar Forum and the BNP strongly demanded for resignation of student advisors Mahfuj Alam and Asif Muhammad alleging them as NCP loyalists.

Bangladesh's political culture rooted violence, corruption and extortion soon caught up to the nation's newest political alternative. In April, its joint member secretary, Gazi Salauddin Tanvir, was accused of involvement in corruption and misconduct over the appointment of Deputy Commissioners, leading to his removal from NCP. The party's 'March to build the country' rally in July took a violent turn in Gopalganj district when party leaders revealed their real intent ' bury Mujibism along with 1972 'Mujibbadi' Constitution.

NCP's rally in Gopalganj, the birthplace of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman where Awami League continues to maintain a stronghold despite ban, was perceived as a provocative act by locals as words spread the party's intention to desecrate Mujib's graveyard leading to a violent clash. The following month, NCP joint coordinator of Chattogram city branch Nizam Uddin's video of his involvement in extortion to suppress a port-related protest became viral, leading to his suspension. Indeed, the apple didn't fall far from the tree.

The interim government's political bias towards NCP became more visible when, following NCP-led street protests in May, it announced a ban on the Awami League thus leading to its registration suspension as a political party in the Election Commission. Before NCP's protest, the interim government had maintained that it was for 'Awami League to decide if it wants to participate in the election', indicating it had no plan to ban the party earlier. It is not just Awami League's ban, but also attempts at complete historical revisionism ' removing public holidays dedicated to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, excluding his title as the 'Father of the Nation' by revising the Liberation War Act and removing his picture by redesigning currency notes and portraits from public offices, to name a few ' are all calculative steps taken under the strong demands of the NCP.

/IANS