The Ganatantri Dal was

East Pakistan East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Scheme, One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India ...

's first secular political party. It was founded on 19 January 1953 by Mahmud Ali with

Haji Mohammad Danesh Hajee Mohammad Danesh (1900 – 28 June 1986) was a Bangladeshi politician and communist activist born in the British India. Early life Hajee Mohammad Danesh was born to a Bengali Muslim peasant family in the village of Sultanpur in the Dinajp ...

, a veteran

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

activist of the

Tebhaga movement Tebhaga movement (1946–1947) was significant peasant agitation, initiated in Bengal by the All India Kisan Sabha of peasant front of the Communist Party of India. History At that time sharecroppers had contracted to give half of their har ...

as its first president. The party was the first to open its doors to non-Muslims on an equal footing and demanded a secular constitution. The Ganatantri Dal called for an independent foreign policy and opposed the League's pro-west stance. The party manifesto included the demand for the abolition of feudalism without any compensation, the release of political prisoners, secession from the Commonwealth, nationalization of jute trade, equal rights for women and minorities in social, political and economic spheres, and abolition of visa system between Pakistan and India. Mahmud Ali later became its president and formed a coalition with the

United Front A united front is an alliance of groups against their common enemies, figuratively evoking unification of previously separate geographic fronts and/or unification of previously separate armies into a front. The name often refers to a political ...

which swept the 1954 provincial elections in East Bengal. The Supreme Council of the party, meeting from 21 to 23 July 1957, decided to cease independent operations and merge with the newly forming

National Awami Party The National Awami Party (NAP), translated from Urdu to English as National People's Party, was the major left-wing political party in East and West Pakistan. It was founded in 1957 in Dhaka, erstwhile East Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh), by A ...

(NAP). It had its own flag, half red and half blue. "The red, with a symbol of a plough on it, stands for progress and agrarian economy. The blue, with three stars, indicates peace and alliance with national bourgeoisie, working classes and the peasantry."

References

1953 establishments in East Pakistan Defunct political parties in Bangladesh Defunct political parties in Pakistan Political parties established in 1953 Political parties with year of disestablishment missing Socialist parties in Bangladesh Socialist parties in Pakistan {{Pakistan-party-stub