A major rebellion has erupted within Bangladesh’s National Citizen Party (NCP) following its decision to join an electoral alliance with the Islamist Jamaat-e-Islami, leading to senior resignations and a public denouncement from the July Uprising’s “guru.”
The National Citizen Party, the political vehicle formed by student leaders of the 2024 July Uprising, was thrown into crisis on Sunday (28 December) after formally joining an eight-party electoral coalition led by Jamaat-e-Islami. The move has triggered a wave of resignations and a formal protest by 30 central committee members who argue that teaming up with the radical Islamist group betrays the democratic values of the movement that ousted Sheikh Hasina.
The alliance was announced at the Jatiya Press Club by Jamaat Ameer Shafiqur Rahman, who confirmed seat-sharing talks for all 300 parliamentary constituencies are nearly done. But the fallout within the NCP was immediate:
- The Resignations: Senior joint convener Tajnuva Jabeen and senior joint member secretary Tasnim Jara resigned in protest. Jara announced she’d contest the February 12 elections as an independent from the Dhaka-9 constituency.
- The Memorandum: Thirty senior leaders submitted a memo titled “Principled objections to a potential alliance in light of the accountability of the July Uprising and party values,” condemning Jamaat’s “anti-independence” role during the 1971 Liberation War.
- Ideological Clash: Dissenters, including leader Samantha Sharmin, warned that NCP’s vision of a “Second Republic” is fundamentally incompatible with Jamaat’s political philosophy, calling the group an “unreliable ally.”
In a particularly heavy blow to the party’s legitimacy, Mahfuz Alam, widely seen as the “guru” and chief strategist of the 2024 uprising, publicly distanced himself from the NCP, saying on Facebook that he declined to be a “part of this NCP” after the alliance.
NCP Convenor Nahid Islam defended the partnership as a “purely electoral” strategy rather than an ideological alignment. Reports suggest the NCP turned to Jamaat after failed seat-sharing negotiations with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, which has tried to maintain a more centrist position ahead of the polls.
“Entering into any cooperation with Jamaat-e-Islami would force the NCP to pay a heavy price… Their ideology clashes with our vision of justice and reform,” Samantha Sharmin said.
“The alliance has nearly finalised its nomination list… The NCP leaders were unable to attend the briefing due to time constraints but have clearly informed us of their decision,” Jamaat Ameer Shafiqur Rahman said.
The February 12, 2026, general election will be the first since the fall of the Awami League regime. With the Awami League currently suspended and barred from the polls, the political landscape has become a battleground between the established BNP and the emerging student-led platforms. The NCP was initially launched in February 2025 with the backing of interim leader Muhammad Yunus, promising a new brand of “clean” politics. This internal split suggests the “new politics” is already wrestling with the reality of coalition-building in a deeply polarized environment.
The rift threatens to damage the NCP’s credibility among the urban youth and secular activists who formed the core of the July movement. As the election gets closer, analysts suggest the NCP may struggle to present a unified front, potentially turning it into a “spoiler” party that splits the anti-Awami League vote in key urban constituencies.
Also Read / The Breaking Point: India-Bangladesh Tensions Spill into the Streets of New Delhi.
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