Bangladesh News

Pro-Saifur faction of BNP and some other political parties on Friday started a discussion among themselves on forming a new political alliance to win the upcoming election.

According to sources, Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan and Hafiz Uddin Ahmed of pro-Saifur faction of BNP, Anisul Islam Mahmud and Ziauddin Bablu of Ershad-led Jatiyo Party, Gonoforum leader Pankaj Bhattacharya, Maj (retd) Abdul Mannan of Bikalpadhara, Anwarul Kabir Talukder and Kabir Hossain of Liberal Democratic Party, and a leader of Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) met secretly in the residence of a former BNP lawmaker in Gulshan area of the capital on Friday night.

In the exclusive meeting the leaders of political parties agreed in principle to form a new progressive, patriotic, nationalist alliance of parties to win the upcoming election, following which they also intend to form a national unity government.

Ferdaus Ahmed Quarishi, president of PDP, and Maj (retd) Abdul Mannan of Bikalpadhara Bangaldesh, however told The Daily Star last night that they had not been in any such meeting.

“We don’t want to go back to the days of an imperial prime minister’s rule, neither do we want any elected autocracy,” the meeting sources quoted a senior political leader as saying. The leader also said democracy failed in the country in the last 15 years due to such kinds of misrule.

Few other leaders of some other political parties including Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh had also got invitations to the meeting.

Most of the invited parties which declined to join the meeting said they did not join it because of the possible presence of Jamaat in it, since they do not want to sit with any anti-liberation force.

However, it could not be ascertained till last night if any Jamaat leader was present in the two and a half hours long meeting which began at 9:00pm.

When contacted by The Daily Star after repeated tries on Friday night, Pankaj Bhattacharya also denied attending the meeting.

But a political leader claiming to be a participant in the meeting, told The Daily Star yesterday that the leaders who denied being present in the meeting had actually been there and discussed the possibility of forming a grand alliance that might be able to form a government based on a national consensus after winning the upcoming election as an alliance.

According to the meeting sources, some ‘reformist’ Awami League leaders had also been invited who declined to join, although they assured the organisers that they will join the initiative later.

A political leader who had been present in the meeting told The Daily Star yesterday, “We agreed to form a new political alliance to uphold the spirit of 1/11.”

“It will be a new alliance for bringing a consensus in politics,” he said adding, they will form a government based on a national consensus if they win the upcoming election as an alliance.

The meeting sources also said the political leaders discussed a possible minimum programme for unity including freeing the country from corruption, criminality, and dynastic rule.

“We will amend the constitution to make the parliament effective if our proposed alliance wins the election with the necessary majority,” said a political leader who admitted to attending the meeting. He said they also emphasised the necessity for strengthening local government bodies for making democracy stronger and more effective.

According to the sources, the leaders will sit again soon in a follow up meeting with a greater number of them present.