The Bangladesh Nationalist Party ( bn, বাংলাদেশ জাতীয়তাবাদী দল, Bangladesh Jātīyotābādī Dol; BNP) is a
centre-right
Centre-right politics lean to the Right-wing politics, right of the Left–right politics, political spectrum, but are closer to the Centrism, centre. From the 1780s to the 1880s, there was a shift in the Western world of social class structure a ...
to
right-wing
Right-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position on the basis of natural law, economics, authorit ...
nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
, political party in Bangladesh and one of the major
political parties of Bangladesh. It was founded on 1 September 1978 by former Bangladeshi President
Ziaur Rahman
Lt. General Ziaur Rahman (19 January 1936 – 30 May 1981), was a Bangladeshi military officer and politician who served as the President of Bangladesh from 1977 to 1981. He was assassinated on 30 May 1981 in Chittagong in an army coup d' ...
after the Presidential election of 1978, with a view of uniting the people with a
nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
ideology. Since then, the BNP won the second, fifth, sixth and eighth national elections and two Presidential elections in 1978 and 1981. The party also holds the record of being the largest opposition in the history of parliamentary elections of the country, with 116 seats in the
seventh national election of June 1996. It has currently 7 MPs in parliament after
2018 general election. Although the party was initially founded on a nationalistic principle, many of its leaders want an Islamic government and its main supporters are Islamists.
Ideology
The party holds the ideology of
Bangladeshi nationalism as its core concept and adopted a 19-point program which declared that "The sovereignty and independence of Bangladesh, golden fruits of the historic liberation struggle, is our sacred trust and inviolable right". The founding manifesto of the BNP claims that the people of Bangladesh want to "...see that all-out faith and confidence in the almighty Allah, democracy, nationalism and socialism of social and economic justice are reflected in all spheres of national life".
BNP and its
student wing
A student wing is a subsidiary, autonomous, or independently allied front of a larger organization that is formed in order to rally support from students and focus on student specific issues, typically of those attending college or university. Stu ...
was the driving force in the 1990 uprising against the autocratic
Ershad rule that culminated in the fall of the regime and the restoration of democracy in Bangladesh.
Begum Khaleda Zia
Khaleda Zia (; born Khaleda Khanam Putul in 1945) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh from March 1991 to March 1996, and again from June 2001 to October 2006. She was the first female prime minister of Ba ...
, who served as the party's chairperson from 1983, was elected as the first woman
Prime Minister of Bangladesh
The Prime Minister of Bangladesh ( bn, বাংলাদেশের প্রধানমন্ত্রী, translit=Bangladesher Prodhanmontri), officially Prime Minister of the People's Republic of Bangladesh ( bn, গণপ্রজা ...
and the second female Prime Minister of a
Muslim majority country after Pakistan's
Benazir Bhutto
Benazir Bhutto ( ur, بینظیر بُھٹو; sd, بينظير ڀُٽو; Urdu ; 21 June 1953 – 27 December 2007) was a Pakistani politician who served as the 11th and 13th prime minister of Pakistan from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 t ...
.
Begum Khaleda Zia is the chairperson of the party, with
Tarique Rahman
Tarique Rahman is a Bangladeshi politician who is the current acting chairman of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) since February 2018. He has been residing in London with his family since he left Bangladesh in September 2008.
Early life and ...
as the senior vice-chairman and
Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir
Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir (born 26 January 1948) is a Bangladeshi politician. He has been the secretary general of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) since 2016. He was a member of the parliament for Thakurgaon-1 constituency from 2001 t ...
as the secretary-general.
History
JAGODAL
On 22 February 1978, a new party, Jatiyatabadi Ganatantrik Dal (JAGODAL), was formed with Justice
Abdus Sattar ʻAbd al-Sattār (ALA-LC romanization of ar, عبد الستّار) is an Arabic Muslim male given name, built on the Arabic words '' ʻabd'' and ''al-Sattār''. The name means "servant of the Veiler (of sins)".
Because the letter s is a sun lett ...
as the coordinator. Most of the prominent figures were from the advisory council that was running the country at that time. Jagadal was the first attempt to create a platform for the nationalists of the country. Major General (retd) M.Majid ul Haq, Professor
Syed Ali Ahsan
Syed Ali Ahsan ( bn, সৈয়দ আলী আহসান; 26 March 1922 – 25 June 2002) was a Bangladeshi poet, writer and university academic. He was awarded Ekushey Padak (1982) and Independence Day Award (1987) by the Government of Bang ...
, Shamsul Alam Chowdhury,
A.Z.M. Enayetullah Khan,
M. Hamidullah Khan
Muhammad Hamidullah Khan, TJ, Sitara-e-Harb, BP ( bn, এম হামিদুল্লাহ খান; 11 September 1938 – 30 December 2011) was a military leader in two wars fought in South Asia: the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 and t ...
, Jakaria Chowdhury, Professor Dr. M. R. Khan, and
Saifur Rahman {{Short description, Male name
Saifur Rahman (Saudi Arabia ar, سيف الرحمن }) is a male Muslim given name, meaning ''sword of the Most Gracious''.
سيفور meaning Saifur in arabic.
This may refer to:
*Akhundzada Saif-ur-Rahman Mubara ...
were prominent figures. JAGODAL was dissolved on 28 August 1978 to consolidate its membership under the newly formed Jatiyatabadi Front.
Jatiyatabadi Front
On 1 May 1978 the Jatiyatabadi Front or Nationalist Front was formed with Ziaur Rahman as the chief of the front, which JAGODAL joined soon after its formation. A major portion of NAP (Bhashani) joined the front as well with
Mashiur Rahman.
Shah Azizur Rahman
Shah Azizur Rahman ( bn, শাহ আজিজুর রহমান; 23 November 1925 – 1 September 1989) was a Bangladeshi politician who served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. However, he was the subject of considerable controversy for ...
with some of his colleagues from
Muslim League Muslim League may refer to:
Political parties Subcontinent
; British India
*All-India Muslim League, Mohammed Ali Jinah, led the demand for the partition of India resulting in the creation of Pakistan.
**Punjab Muslim League, a branch of the organ ...
.
Kazi Zafar Ahmed
Kazi Zafar Ahmad (; 1 July 193927 August 2015) was a Bangladeshi politician of the Jatiya Party, who was the Prime Minister of Bangladesh from 1989 to 1990.
Early life
Ahmed was born in 1939, in village: Kazi Bari Cheora Chauddagram Upazila, C ...
and a faction of United Peoples Party, Maolana Matin with his Labour Party, and minority leader Rashraj Mandal with Tafsili Jati Federation also joined.
Ziaur Rahman was their candidate for the Presidential Election of 3 June 1978. Ziaur Rahman won the election, defeating
M. A. G. Osmani
Muhammad Ataul Goni Osmani ( bn, মুহাম্মদ আতাউল গণি ওসমানী; 1 September 1918 – 16 February 1984), also known as ''Bangabir'' (the Hero of Bengal), was a Bengali military leader. Osmani's career ...
of Ganatantrik Oikya Jote (United Democratic Alliance) which was backed by the Bangladesh Awami League.
Formation of BNP
After the Presidential election of 1978 the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) was established on 1 September.
The constitution of the party was drafted in 21 days of the formation with 76 members with
Ziaur Rahman
Lt. General Ziaur Rahman (19 January 1936 – 30 May 1981), was a Bangladeshi military officer and politician who served as the President of Bangladesh from 1977 to 1981. He was assassinated on 30 May 1981 in Chittagong in an army coup d' ...
as the chief convener,
M. Hamidullah Khan
Muhammad Hamidullah Khan, TJ, Sitara-e-Harb, BP ( bn, এম হামিদুল্লাহ খান; 11 September 1938 – 30 December 2011) was a military leader in two wars fought in South Asia: the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 and t ...
as the Executive Secretary and Dr.
A. Q. M. Badruddoza Chowdhury
Abdul Qasim Mohammad Badruddoza Chowdhury (known as AQM Badrudozza Chowdhury; ; born 1 November 1932) served as the President of Bangladesh from 14 November 2001 until his resignation on 21 June 2002. He was the founding secretary-general of B ...
was appointed as the Secretary General.
Founding convening committee
*
Ziaur Rahman
Lt. General Ziaur Rahman (19 January 1936 – 30 May 1981), was a Bangladeshi military officer and politician who served as the President of Bangladesh from 1977 to 1981. He was assassinated on 30 May 1981 in Chittagong in an army coup d' ...
* Justice
Abdus Sattar ʻAbd al-Sattār (ALA-LC romanization of ar, عبد الستّار) is an Arabic Muslim male given name, built on the Arabic words '' ʻabd'' and ''al-Sattār''. The name means "servant of the Veiler (of sins)".
Because the letter s is a sun lett ...
* Syed Masud Roomy
*
Mashiur Rahman
*
M. Hamidullah Khan
Muhammad Hamidullah Khan, TJ, Sitara-e-Harb, BP ( bn, এম হামিদুল্লাহ খান; 11 September 1938 – 30 December 2011) was a military leader in two wars fought in South Asia: the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 and t ...
*
Shah Azizur Rahman
Shah Azizur Rahman ( bn, শাহ আজিজুর রহমান; 23 November 1925 – 1 September 1989) was a Bangladeshi politician who served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. However, he was the subject of considerable controversy for ...
*
Mohammad Mohammadullah
Mohammad Mohammadullah ( bn, মোহাম্মদ মুহম্মদুল্লাহ; 21 October 1921 – 12 November 1999) was the President of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. Mohammadullah became the Acting President on 24 Decemb ...
*
Abdul Halim Chowdhury
Abdul Halim Chowdhury (1 February 1928 – 7 October 1987) was a Bangladesh Nationalist Party politician, Member of Parliament, and government minister. He is a retired captain of Pakistan Army and fought in the Bangladesh Liberation War.
Earl ...
* Rashraj Mandal
*
Abdul Momen Khan
*
Mirza Ghulam Hafiz
Mirza Ghulam Hafiz (2 January 192020 December 2000) was a Bangladeshi statesman, politician, and philanthropist.
Early life and education
Hafiz was born to Mirza Azimuddin Sarkar on 2 January 1920 in Panchagarh District, East Bengal, Britis ...
* Major General (retd.)
Majid-ul-Haq
* Brigadier (retd.)
Nurul Islam Shishu
Nurul Islam Shishu is a retired General of Bangladesh Army, a veteran of the Bangladesh Liberation war, and former Bangladesh Nationalist Party politician. He served as the Minister of Agriculture under President Ziaur Rahman. He was considered t ...
* Captain (retd.) Nurul Huq
* Mohammad
Saifur Rahman {{Short description, Male name
Saifur Rahman (Saudi Arabia ar, سيف الرحمن }) is a male Muslim given name, meaning ''sword of the Most Gracious''.
سيفور meaning Saifur in arabic.
This may refer to:
*Akhundzada Saif-ur-Rahman Mubara ...
* K. M. Obaidur Rahman
*
Moudud Ahmed
Moudud Ahmed (24 May 1940 – 16 March 2021) was a Bangladeshi lawyer and politician. He was a standing committee member of Bangladesh Nationalist Party. Ahmed was elected as a Jatiya Sangsad member total five times from Noakhali-1 and Noakhali-5 ...
* Shamsul Huda Chowdhury
*
A.Z.M. Enayetullah Khan
* S. A. Bari
* Dr. Amina Rahman
* Abdur Rahman
* Dr. M. A. Matin
*
Abdul Alim ʻAbd al-ʻAlīm (ALA-LC romanization of ar, عبد العليم) is a male Muslim given name. It is built from the Arabic words '' ʻabd'' and ''al-ʻAlīm'', one of the names of God in the Qur'an
Names of God in Islam ( ar, أَسْمَاءُ ...
*
Barrister Abul Hasnat
*
Anwar Hossain Manju
Anwar Hossain Manju (born 9 February 1944) is a Bangladeshi politician who is the incumbent Jatiya Sangsad member representing Pirojpur-2 constituency which consists of Kawkhali, Bhandaria and Zianagar upazilas. He was elected a member of Jat ...
* Jamal Uddin Ahmed
* Dr.
A. Q. M. Badruddoza Chowdhury
Abdul Qasim Mohammad Badruddoza Chowdhury (known as AQM Badrudozza Chowdhury; ; born 1 November 1932) served as the President of Bangladesh from 14 November 2001 until his resignation on 21 June 2002. He was the founding secretary-general of B ...
* Nur Mohammad Khan
* Abdul Karim
* Shamsul Bari
* Mojibur Rahman
* Dr. Faridul Huda
* Sheikh Ali Ashraf
*
Abdur Rahman Biswas
Abdur Rahman Biswas (1 September 1926 – 3 November 2017) was a Bangladeshi politician. He was the President of Bangladesh from 1991 to 1996. Biswas represented Pakistan at the United Nations General Assembly prior to the independence of Bangla ...
* Barrister Abdul Huq
* Imran Ali Sarker
*
Dewan Sirajul Huq
* Emdadur Rahman
* M. Afsar Uddin
* Kabir Chowdhury
* Dr. M. R. Khan
* Captain (retd.) Sujat Ali
* Tushar Kanti Baroi
* Sunil Gupta
* Anisur Rahman
* Abul Kashem
* Mansur Ali Sarker
* Abdul Hamid Chowdhury
* Mansur Ali
* Julmat Ali Khan
*
Nazmul Huda
Nazmul Huda (born 6 January 1943) is a Bangladeshi barrister and politician. He served as the minister of information (1991–1996) and the minister of communications (2001–2006) of the government of Bangladesh. He was a 4-term Jatiya Sangsad ...
* Mahbub Ahmed
* Abu Said Khan
* Mohammad Ismail
* Sirajul Huq Mantu
* Shah Badrul Huq
* Abdur Rauf
* Morsheduzzaman
* Jahir Uddin Khan
* Sultan Ahmed Chowdhury
* Toriqul Islam
* Anwarul H Khan Chowdhury
* Moin Uddin Khan
* M. A. Sattar
* Haji Jalal
* Ahmed Ali Mandal
* Shahed Ali
* Abdul Wadud
* Shah Abdul Halim
*
Muhammad Jamiruddin Sircar
BarristerMuhammad Jamiruddin Sircar ( bn, এডভোকেট মুহাম্মদ জমির উদ্দিন সরকার; born 1 December 1931); is a Bangladeshi lawyer and politician who served as the acting President of Bangl ...
* Atauddin Khan
* Abdur Razzaq Chowdhury
* Ahmed Ali
The BNP formed its first government after the
1979 Bangladeshi general election
General elections were held in Bangladesh on 18 February 1979. The result was a victory for the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, which won 207 of the 300 seats. Voter turnout was 51.3%. The Awami League became the main opposition party after winnin ...
. The first session of the parliament was 2 April 1979. It elected
Shah Azizur Rahman
Shah Azizur Rahman ( bn, শাহ আজিজুর রহমান; 23 November 1925 – 1 September 1989) was a Bangladeshi politician who served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. However, he was the subject of considerable controversy for ...
as Prime Minister and leader of the parliament.
Mirza Ghulam Hafiz
Mirza Ghulam Hafiz (2 January 192020 December 2000) was a Bangladeshi statesman, politician, and philanthropist.
Early life and education
Hafiz was born to Mirza Azimuddin Sarkar on 2 January 1920 in Panchagarh District, East Bengal, Britis ...
was elected as the speaker of the parliament.
Asaduzzaman Khan
Asaduzzaman Khan (born 31 December 1950) is a Bangladesh Awami League politician. He became the Member of Parliament for Dhaka-12 in 2014, being re-elected in 2018. He currently serves as Minister of Home Affairs.
Early life
Khan was born on ...
from the Awami League became the leader of the opposition.
During this time it attracted a large pool of supporters and activists who joined the newly formed students wing and youth wing. After the formation of the government, the first executive committee of the party was declared. A national standing committee was formed as the highest decision-making forum of the party with 12 members.
Founding National Standing Committee
*
Ziaur Rahman
Lt. General Ziaur Rahman (19 January 1936 – 30 May 1981), was a Bangladeshi military officer and politician who served as the President of Bangladesh from 1977 to 1981. He was assassinated on 30 May 1981 in Chittagong in an army coup d' ...
*
Abdus Sattar ʻAbd al-Sattār (ALA-LC romanization of ar, عبد الستّار) is an Arabic Muslim male given name, built on the Arabic words '' ʻabd'' and ''al-Sattār''. The name means "servant of the Veiler (of sins)".
Because the letter s is a sun lett ...
*
Shah Azizur Rahman
Shah Azizur Rahman ( bn, শাহ আজিজুর রহমান; 23 November 1925 – 1 September 1989) was a Bangladeshi politician who served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. However, he was the subject of considerable controversy for ...
* Major General (retd.)
Majid-ul-Haq
* Abdur Razzaq Chowdhury
*
Sheikh Razzak Ali
Sheikh Razzak Ali (28 August 1928 – 7 June 2015) was a Bangladeshi politician, Deputy Law Minister of State and Deputy Speaker and two time Speaker of Bangladesh Jatiya Sangsad. Ali died on 7 June 2015.
Early life
Born in 1928 in Hitampur v ...
* Barrister
Muhammad Jamiruddin Sircar
BarristerMuhammad Jamiruddin Sircar ( bn, এডভোকেট মুহাম্মদ জমির উদ্দিন সরকার; born 1 December 1931); is a Bangladeshi lawyer and politician who served as the acting President of Bangl ...
* Ekramul Huq
* Dr.
A. Q. M. Badruddoza Chowdhury
Abdul Qasim Mohammad Badruddoza Chowdhury (known as AQM Badrudozza Chowdhury; ; born 1 November 1932) served as the President of Bangladesh from 14 November 2001 until his resignation on 21 June 2002. He was the founding secretary-general of B ...
* Syed Muhibul Hasan
* Amina Rahman
* A.S.M. Yusuf
* Barrister Nazmul Huda
A youth wing was formed in September 1978 which was named Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Jubo Dal with Abul Kashem as chief convener. The Dhaka unit convener was Saifur Rahman. Within a couple of months the central executive committee of Jubo Dal was declared with Abul Kashem and Saifur Rahman as the President and general secretary respectively.
Mirza Abbas
Mirza Abbas Uddin Ahmed, known as Mirza Abbas, (born 7 February 1951) is a Bangladesh Nationalist Party politician and a member of the national standing committee of the party. He was the Mayor of Dhaka City Corporation from 1991 to 1993. He was ...
became the Dhaka unit President with Kamruzzaman Ayat Ali as the Secretary General.
1981–1982
On 30 May 1981 the founder of the party President Ziaur Rahman was assassinated in the Chittagong Circuit House by a small group of military officials. After the
assassination of Ziaur Rahman
Ziaur Rahman, the 7th president of Bangladesh, was assassinated by a faction of officers of Bangladesh Army, on 30 May 1981, in the south-eastern port city of Chittagong. Rahman went to Chittagong to arbitrate in a clash between the local leader ...
, large crowds started protesting in major cities like
Dhaka
Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...
and
Chittagong
Chittagong ( /ˈtʃɪt əˌɡɒŋ/ ''chit-uh-gong''; ctg, চিটাং; bn, চিটাগং), officially Chattogram ( bn, চট্টগ্রাম), is the second-largest city in Bangladesh after Dhaka and third largest city in B ...
. The funeral of Ziaur Rahman became a huge event with the participation of millions of people in Dhaka.
In the
1981 Bangladeshi presidential election
Presidential elections were held in Bangladesh on 15 November 1981. The result was a victory for the incumbent acting President Abdus Sattar of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), who received 65.5% of the vote, beating his principal challenge ...
Abdus Sattar ʻAbd al-Sattār (ALA-LC romanization of ar, عبد الستّار) is an Arabic Muslim male given name, built on the Arabic words '' ʻabd'' and ''al-Sattār''. The name means "servant of the Veiler (of sins)".
Because the letter s is a sun lett ...
was elected. He formed a National Security Council to involve the Bangladesh Armed Forces. Meanwhile, Vice-president Mirza Nurul Huda resigned from his post in March 1982.
Military coup d'état, 1982
Army Chief
Hussain Muhammad Ershad
Lt. Gen. Hussain Muhammad Ershad ( bn, হুসেইন মুহাম্মদ এরশাদ; 1 February 1930 – 14 July 2019) was a Bangladeshi Army Chief politician who served as the President of Bangladesh from 1983 to 1990, a time ma ...
thwarted the elected government of Justice Sattar on 24 March 1982 and replaced him with Justice
A. F. M. Ahsanuddin Chowdhury. The BNP was thrown out of power. Many of its leaders were imprisoned, including former Minister S.A. Bari, Saifur Rahman, Habibullah Khan, Tanvir Ahmed Siddiqui, Atauddin Khan, Jamal Uddin Ahmed, K.M. Obaidur Rahman, Abul Hasnat, and Moudud Ahmed. 233 leaders of BNP were arrested from March to July 1982.
7-Party Alliance
From 1983, Begum
Khaleda Zia
Khaleda Zia (; born Khaleda Khanam Putul in 1945) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh from March 1991 to March 1996, and again from June 2001 to October 2006. She was the first female prime minister of Ba ...
became the de facto decision maker of the party. Under her leadership the BNP formed a new anti-government alliance against the autocratic Ershad regime. It was named after the number of parties with it, 7-Party Alliance.
BNP launched a massive anti-government movement after co-ordination with Awami League led 15-Party Alliance from September 1983.
The 7-Party Alliance arranged a mass gathering and called a nationwide strike on 1 November 1983. The strike was very successful. After that the alliance called to surround the Secretariat on 28 November 1983 along with the 15-Party Alliance.
Thousands of BNP activists led by then Executive Secretary (later designated Office Secretary)
M. Hamidullah Khan
Muhammad Hamidullah Khan, TJ, Sitara-e-Harb, BP ( bn, এম হামিদুল্লাহ খান; 11 September 1938 – 30 December 2011) was a military leader in two wars fought in South Asia: the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 and t ...
surrounded the secretariat building at Paltan and broke large hole of the southern corner of the boundary wall of the building. The police retaliated with indiscriminate firing of live bullets.
M. Hamidullah Khan
Muhammad Hamidullah Khan, TJ, Sitara-e-Harb, BP ( bn, এম হামিদুল্লাহ খান; 11 September 1938 – 30 December 2011) was a military leader in two wars fought in South Asia: the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 and t ...
was arrested on 3 November in the afternoon from his residence at Dhaka Cantonment. A ban on political activities was imposed that night and Begum Khaleda Zia was kept under house arrest. The illegal regime was severely shaken at the core. A long curfew and ban on politics was imposed.
On 29 February 1984, Ershad declared that the ban on politics would be lifted on 26 March and on 27 May both the Presidential and national election would be held. The 7-Party Alliance asked for the national election prior to the Presidential election. After the lifting of the ban, Khaleda Zia attended an extended meeting of the party on 1 April where she was made the acting chairperson of the party. In May, the Chairperson Justice Sattar resigned and Khaleda Zia was made the chairperson of the party.
Under the leadership of Khaleda Zia, the first major step BNP took was to expel leaders like Shah Azizur Rahman, Moudud Ahmed, AKM Maidul Islam, Abdul Alim, and Barrister Sultan Ahmed Chowdhury from the party. These leaders formed a committee with Shah Aziz as the President and AKM Maidul Islam as the general secretary. This faction later joined the Jatiya Front and
Jatiya Party.
Attack on Begum Khaleda Zia
On 23 September 1984 while addressing a rally in
Bogra
Bogra ( bn, বগুড়া), officially known as Bogura, is a major city located in Bogra District, Rajshahi Division, Bangladesh. The city is a major commercial hub in Northern Bangladesh. It is the second largest city in Rajshahi Divi ...
, 10 or 12 handmade grenades were charged on the rally while some of them were aimed at the stage where Khaleda Zia was giving her speech. Khaleda Zia narrowly escaped injury while eleven of her party received severe injuries. A nationwide strike was called in protest at this attack on 22 and 27 December. The government imposed a ban on political activities on those days to foil the strike, but it was largely ignored. Two people including a student leader from Bangladesh, Jatiotabadi Chatra Dal, died when police fired on a crowd on 22 December.
Upazila election 1985
The government, amid protests, held upazila elections on 15 May 1985 in 251
upazilas
An ''upazila'' ( bn, উপজেলা, upôzela, lit=sub-district pronounced: ), formerly called ''thana'', is an administrative region in Bangladesh, functioning as a sub-unit of a district. It can be seen as an analogous to a county or a ...
and on 20 May in 209. The election was marked by rigging, stuffing, snatching of ballots and electoral fraud. Ershad's newly formed Janadal got 190 candidates as victors. Though BNP was in trouble because of government repression, it got 46 of its leader as upazila chairmen while the Awami League fared worse with 41 upazila chairman.
Formation of student alliance
In 1985, BNP's students wing
Bangladesh Jatiotabadi Chatra Dal
Bangladesh Jatiotabadi Chatra Dal ( bn, জাতীয়তাবাদী ছাত্রদল ''Jatiyôtabadee Chhatrô Dôl''), also known as ''J.C.D'', is the student wing of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Many of the top BNP leade ...
formed Shongrami Chatra Jote with Chatra League (Awranga), Chatra League (Pradhan) and five other student organisations and started its resistance against Ershad.
General election 1986
In March 1986, Ershad declared that a national election would be held on 26 April. Both the 7-Party Alliance led by BNP and the 15-Party Alliance led by the Awami League declared a boycott of the election on 17 March. Both called a joint rally on 21 March and a nationwide strike on 22 March as the immediate program to thwart the forthcoming election.
The night before the nationwide strike on 22 March, the Awami League called a meeting of the 15-Party Alliance but Sheikh Hasina refused to take part in the meeting. In the meeting majority of the parties including the Awami League opined in favour of the election. General Khalilur Rahman of Awami League was maintaining close contacts with the army headquarters during the meeting that night. Sheikh Hasina was having discussion with General Khalil periodically.
On the final hours of 21 March 1986, Sheikh Hasina announced that the Awami League and her alliance would participate in the election. Five parties of the alliance parted ways from the Awami League after the announcement and decided to boycott the election. BNP and the 7-Party Alliance with the newly formed 5-Party alliance of leftists started campaigning against the election while the Awami League and
Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami
Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami ( bn, বাংলাদেশ জামায়াতে ইসলামী, Bānglādēsh Jāmāyatē Islāmī, Bangladesh Islamic Assembly), previously known as Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh, or Jamaat for short, was ...
joined the election.
The election was largely boycotted. BNP Chairperson mobilised a large pool of political parties and their leaders behind her to boycott the election. Apart from the BNP led 7-Party Alliance and leftist 5-Party Alliance, 17 more parties including BNP (
Shah Aziz), Samajbadi Dal (
Nirmal Sen Nirmal Sen (August 3, 1930 – January 8, 2013) was a Bangladeshi journalist and politician.
Early life
Sen was born on 3 August 1930 in Dighirpar village, Kotalipara Upazila, Gopalganj District, Bangladesh, Gopalganj District, East Bengali, Brit ...
), Democratic League (Moshtaq), Democratic League (
Oli Ahad
Oli Ahad ( – 20 October 2012) was a Bangladeshi politician and language activist of the Bengali language movement, Language Movement. He was awarded Independence Day Award in 2004 by the Government of Bangladesh.
Early life
Ahad was born in t ...
),
Islamic Democratic League,
Islami Andolon (M. A. Jalil), Janata Party,
Jatiya Ganatantrik Party
Jatiya Ganotantrik Party (JAGPA) is an unregistered minor political party in Bangladesh. Its founder is Shafiul Alam Pradhan who formed the JAGPA on 6 April 1980 through a press conference at Baitul Mokarram.
The current president of this politic ...
, Labour Party (Maolana Matin), Muslim League (
Kamruzzaman), Progatishil Ganatantrik Shakti and so on.
Khaleda Zia reiterated that the BNP would participate only if:
# The fundamental rights are restored
# All political prisoners are released
# All convictions of politicians by the military courts are cancelled
The anti-election alliance under BNP called for a nationwide strike on election day. Unrest, voting fraud and malpractices marked the election day according to the opposition parties. Both the Awami League and Jamaat-e-Islami conceded humiliating defeat in the election.
![Begum Khaleda Zia during anti-autocrat movement](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Begum_Khaleda_Zia_during_anti-autocrat_movement.jpg)
General Hussain Mohammad Ershad got himself elected on 15 October 1986. Prior to the
election
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...
, Khaleda Zia was put under house arrest on 13 October.
In a joint declaration, the two alliances called for "Siege Dhaka" program on 10 November 1987. The government imposed a ban on public gatherings ahead of the program which was defied on the day, and during the program, the capital of the country virtually went under the control of the opposition alliances.
This incident infuriated the opposition and a nationwide protest was called on the following day. The government came hard handed and both Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina was put under house arrest on 11 October.
Both the parties and their partners in the movement declared frequent nationwide strikes for the next days until the end of the year.
General election 1988
BNP was determined about not to join poll under Ershad regime and decided to boycott the
general election of 1988 after the abolishment of the previous parliament. The election was held on 3 March without the participation of any popular party or alliance rather a combined opposition was made led by ASM Abdur Rab. BNP called a nationwide on the Election Day and declared they would resist the election.
Organizational reformations
On the advice of Dr.
Badruddoza Chowdhury, BNP chief Begum Zia, on 21 June 1988, suspended the national standing committee and executive committee on the party for various reasons including the failures to strengthening the party of leaders. During this opportunity former military officers were also removed from leadership positions within the party.
M. Hamidullah Khan
Muhammad Hamidullah Khan, TJ, Sitara-e-Harb, BP ( bn, এম হামিদুল্লাহ খান; 11 September 1938 – 30 December 2011) was a military leader in two wars fought in South Asia: the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 and t ...
was relieved from his post as Executive Secretary. On 3 July 1988 Barrister
Abdus Salam Talukder, a distinguished lawyer, was assigned with the post of Secretary General of the party instead of
KM Obaidur Rahman
KM Obaidur Rahman (5 May 1940 – 21 March 2007) was a Bangladeshi politician. He was a member of the Jatiya Sangsad in 1973 representing Bangladesh Awami League and in 1979, 1996 and 2001 representing the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).
Ea ...
. Soon after the removal of Obaidur, he with
Jamal Uddin Ahmed and Abul Hasnat formed a new party with the same name. On 17 July of the same year,
Shah Azizur Rahman
Shah Azizur Rahman ( bn, শাহ আজিজুর রহমান; 23 November 1925 – 1 September 1989) was a Bangladeshi politician who served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. However, he was the subject of considerable controversy for ...
dissolved the BNP faction with him and joined the party with his followers on 26 August. Barrister Abdus Salam Talukder restructured the BNP, making it a stronger political platform that thrived through the critical time to topple Ershad regime.
1990 Mass Uprising
The movement against Ershad started gaining momentum from October 1990. The BNP led 7-party alliance, the Awami League led 8-party alliance and the Leftist 5-party alliance started a movement to usurp Ershad from 10 October 1990 and declared a nationwide strike on that day. The strike claimed 5 lives, including the three BNP activists who were rallying in front of the central office of the Jatiya Party when the Jatiya Party cadres opened fire on the crowd.
On 28 November, the opposition parties including BNP and its student wing defied the curfew and state of emergency and came out with large processions. The curfew and state of emergency was the last resort for Ershad that became ineffective by the end of November 1990. On 3 December, the protests became more violent and many died. Bombs were hurled at the Sena Kalyan Sangstha building at Motijhil. From 27 November to 3 December, more than fifty protesters died. On 4 December, the mass uprising took place and Ershad declared his resignation.
Students movement
Dhaka University Central Students Union (DUCSU) which has always been a centre of all popular movements in the history of Bangladesh came under the control of Bangladesh Jatiotabadi Chatra Dal after the election of 3 June 1990.
The
Amanullah Aman
Amanullah Aman is a Bangladesh Nationalist Party politician and the former Member of Parliament. He is the joint secretary general of BNP.
Early life
Aman was born in Keraniganj Upazila, Dhaka District.
Career
Aman started his political car ...
-
Khairul Kabir Khokan panel backed by Chatra Dal won all the posts and took the lead of the students' movement in the
University of Dhaka
The University of Dhaka (also known as Dhaka University, or DU) is a public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is the oldest university in Bangladesh. The university opened its doors to students on July 1st 1921. Currently i ...
campus.
The Chatra Dal led DUCSU committee forged an alliance with all existing students group in the campus, Sarbadaliya Chatra Oikya Parishad (All-party Students Alliance Council) and staged a demonstration on 1 October 1990. The protests turned violent after the police firing on a rally of Chatra Dal on 10 October that claimed the life of
Naziruddin Jehad, a Chatra Dal leader from Sirajganj who came to Dhaka to join the rally against Ershad.
The series of student protests compelled the Ershad regime to think about a safe exit.
Solidarity of teachers
On 7 December 1989, the BNP supported White panel of teachers got the highest number of Deans elected from their panel including Professor
Anwarullah Chowdhury
Anwarullah Chowdhury is a Bangladeshi academic. He served as the 24th Vice-chancellor of the University of Dhaka. He was the ambassador of Bangladesh to Bahrain.
Education and career
Chowdhury earned his master's degree in Sociology from the Uni ...
, Professor
S M Faiz
Syed Muhammed Abul Faiz (known as SMA Faiz) is a Bangladeshi academic. He served as the 26th vice-chancellor of the University of Dhaka serving from September 2002 until January 2009. Though an academic and a scientific researcher by profession, ...
, Assistant Professor
M. Anwar Hossain and Associate Professor
Humayun Ahmed
Humayun Ahmed (; 13 November 1948 – 19 July 2012) was a Bangladeshi novelist, dramatist, screenwriter, filmmaker, songwriter, scholar, and professor. His breakthrough was his debut novel ''Nondito Noroke'' published in 1972. He wrote over 200 ...
.
The pro-BNP White panel of teachers, which dominated the
Dhaka University Teachers Association
Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest ...
, declared an all-out movement against the Ershad regime in 1990. All the teachers decided to resign from their post on 29 November and confirmed their decision of not returning to classes until the fall of Ershad. The firm reaction from the teachers jeopardised the Ershad regime.
After the fall of Ershad, because of the commitment to the national interest the White panel of teachers won a decisive victory on 24 December 1990 in the election of Dhaka University Teachers Association once again with Professor Anwarullah Chowdhury as the President of the association with Professor M. Anwar Hossain as the general secretary.
Caretaker government (2006–2008)
The military-backed government promised to tackle the longstanding problems of corruption, filing charges against more than 160 politicians, civil servants and businessmen in 2007. Among those charged were Khaleda Zia and her two sons, as well as Sheikh Hasina, leader of the Awami League.
The
Bangladesh Election Commission
The Bangladesh Election Commission ( bn, বাংলাদেশ নির্বাচন কমিশন), abbreviated and publicly referred to as EC, is an independent constitutional body that operates the legal functions of election laws i ...
invited Hafizuddin's faction, rather than Khaleda Zia's, to participate in talks, effectively recognising the former as the legitimate BNP. Khaleda Zia challenged this in court, but her appeal was rejected on 10 April 2008.
After her release later that year, Zia was restored to her position as party leader.
In the
2008 Bangladesh general election, the 4-party alliance led by BNP won 33 seats out of 299 constituencies, of which the BNP alone got 30.
5th National Council, 2009
After sanctions by the Election Commission, the party held country-wide events in order for local leaders to play an active role in the national party. The BNP National Council empowered re-elected party chairperson Khaleda Zia to pick other members for the National Executive Committee and Standing Committee.
It elected her eldest son, Tarique Rahman, to the powerful post as Senior vice-chairman, in a "move apparently designed to smooth his path to the party helm."
Post-election campaigns (2012 – present)
After several movements in a period of severe political unrest between 2012 and 2014 to prevent the ruling party holding the
10th general election in January 2014 without a neutral caretaker government, Khaleda led BNP and its allies in a boycott of the election. Incidents of violence were reported on polling day including bombing of election centres, which the BNP and its allies were accused of. Over 100 people were killed in the 2016 Union Parishad Election in violent clashes between Awami League and BNP supporters. In 2016 the BNP announced its new National Standing Committee, in which Khaleda retained her position as chairperson. New members were recruited while some older members were removed, and various new strategies for party operation were formulated. In May 2017 Khaleda revealed BNP's Vision 2030 to gain public support for the next general elections. However the ruling Awami League government denounced Vision 2030 as an act of plagiarism of Awami League's Vision 2021 which they used in the ninth general election, and claimed most of the targets in the Visions were fulfilled by Awami League, thus declaring BNP's Vision 2030 as unoriginal. BNP also announced it will hold processions to hold the 11th general elections under a neutral government. This renewed tensions between BNP and Awami League.
On 8 February 2018 Khaleda Zia and her son Tarique Rahman as per court verdict, were jailed for 5 and 10 years respectively due to involvement in the
Zia Charitable Trust corruption case The Zia Charitable Trust corruption case refers an ongoing corruption case in Bangladesh that relates to corruption over the misuse of funds in a charity named after former President Ziaur Rahman. Khaleda Zia, former Prime Minister of Bangladesh is ...
. While Tarique was on exile, Khaleda would be imprisoned on old Dhaka Central Jail on Nazimuddin Road. In protest BNP held nationwide demonstrations, which were foiled by well-prepared police force across the nation. A large number of BNP activists were arrested during clashes with the police during the protests against Khaleda's imprisonment.
Jatiya Oikya Front
After the jailing of chairperson
Begum Khaleda Zia
Khaleda Zia (; born Khaleda Khanam Putul in 1945) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh from March 1991 to March 1996, and again from June 2001 to October 2006. She was the first female prime minister of Ba ...
, BNP expedited the process to forge a national unity with prominent leaders of the country. In October 2018, the party formally announced its joining of
Jatiya Oikya Front
Jatiya Oikya Front (English: National Unity Front; bn, জাতীয় ঐক্য ফ্রন্ট) was a Bangladesh-based political alliance of primarily four parties led by Kamal Hossain. The front officially declared its formation on ...
with Dr.
Kamal Hossain
Kamal Hossain (born 20 April 1937) is a founding leader, lawyer and politician of Bangladesh. He is known as the "father of the Bangladeshi constitution" and regarded as an icon of secular democracy in the Indian subcontinent. Hossain currently ...
at its forefront.
There was controversy in the run up to the elections surrounding the nomination of banned
Jamaati candidates under the BNP banner. In 2013 the hard-line, right-wing, Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islami was banned from registering and therefore contesting in elections by the
High Court, citing their charter in violation of the constitution. However 25 Jamaati candidates ran in the election, with 22 nominations for BNP and 3 running as independents.
An investigation was launched but on 23 December the
Election Commission Secretary Helaluddin Ahmed said they had examined the related law and "there is no scope for rejecting the Jamaat leaders' candidacy at this moment."
On 26 December, just days before the election, Jatiya Oikya Front leader Kamal Hossain expressed his regret about Jamaat's involvement in the elections under his alliance, claiming "had I known
hat Jamaat leaders will be given BNP tickets
A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
I would not have been part of it." The media however had reported at the end of November that this was happening.
Party leaders
Chairpersons
Current leadership
* Acting Chairman:
Tarique Rahman
Tarique Rahman is a Bangladeshi politician who is the current acting chairman of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) since February 2018. He has been residing in London with his family since he left Bangladesh in September 2008.
Early life and ...
* Chairperson:
Khaleda Zia
Khaleda Zia (; born Khaleda Khanam Putul in 1945) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh from March 1991 to March 1996, and again from June 2001 to October 2006. She was the first female prime minister of Ba ...
* Secretary General:
Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir
Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir (born 26 January 1948) is a Bangladeshi politician. He has been the secretary general of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) since 2016. He was a member of the parliament for Thakurgaon-1 constituency from 2001 t ...
* Senior Vice Chairperson:
Tarique Rahman
Tarique Rahman is a Bangladeshi politician who is the current acting chairman of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) since February 2018. He has been residing in London with his family since he left Bangladesh in September 2008.
Early life and ...
Electoral history
Presidential Elections
Jatiya Sangsad elections
See also
*
Politics of Bangladesh
Politics of Bangladesh takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic, whereby the Prime Minister of Bangladesh is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the gover ...
*
List of political parties in Bangladesh
This article lists political parties in People's Republic of Bangladesh.
Bangladesh has a fading two-party system, which means that there are two dominant political parties, with extreme difficulty for anybody to achieve electoral success under ...
*
Hartal in Bangladesh
This is a list of hartals ( labour strikes or collective actions) occurring in Bangladesh (including East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Ben ...
*
Economy of Bangladesh
The economy of Bangladesh is a major economy of South Asia and a developing market economy.
—
—
—Siddiqi, Dina M. “Miracle Worker or Womanmachine? Tracking (Trans)National Realities in Bangladeshi Factories.” Economic and Politica ...
*
Jatiyatabadi Samajik Sangskritik Sangstha
Jatiyatabadi Samajik Sangskritik Sangstha (), also known as JASAS, is the cultural of wing of Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
History
Jatiyatabadi Samajik Sangskritik Sangstha was established in 1978.
In February 2015, Bangladesh police arrested ...
References
Bibliography
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External links
*
{{Authority control
Political parties in Bangladesh
Political parties established in 1978
1978 establishments in Bangladesh
Right-wing politics in Bangladesh