If things progress as per the directives of the interim government (IG) the next general election in Bangladesh in February 2026 seems all set to go.
The dominant political parties of Bangladesh except Awami League whose activities are currently under suspension, namely the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islam (BJI), and the newly formed student-led party, the National Citizen Party (NCP), have gone into election mode and are preparing for the election, quite enthusiastically.
So far so good. At the same time, this may also be a good time to investigate the quality of the campaigning parties and see the extent, if at all the norms, behaviour and practices of these parties are suitably endowed, organizationally as well as substantively, to transition Bangladesh to the July/August 2024 Uprising’s/July Sanad’s avowed goals of “…establishing a society and a democratic state system that upholds rule of law and human rights and moral values and is free from corruption and exploitation…”
The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)
Let us begin with BNP, mainly because with the Awami League in suspension, BNP has emerged as the most formidable if not the most vocal political party since August 2014. Therefore, this may also be a good time to examine the backdrop that prompted the rise and its ideological underpinnings that made BNP relevant and attractive to the people of Bangladesh.
Established in 1978, the idea of BNP was first conceived by its founding leader, Ziaur Rahman with the following mission:
(i) Instil among the people of Bangladesh an inclusive national identity, called the “Bangladeshi nationalism,” an idea that gave the people of Bangladesh a sovereign sense of belonging and pride and united them in the mission of nation-building;
(ii) Promote transparency and accountability in governance, and
(iii) Encourage people-centric development through social mobilization.
Zia was leader in Bangladesh for little more than four years and pursued the mission steadfastly, during which he advanced Bangladesh at multiple levels, most recognizably economically.
Furthermore, Zia’s idea of “Bangladeshi nationalism” did mobilize people right across the board and instilled in them a sense of hope and direction.
Sadly, in 1982, a violent military coup killed Ziaur Rahman and following his death, BNP became unsettled till late eighties when Khaleda Zia, widow of Ziaur Rahman, then a housewife, took over the mantle and steadied the party by re-committing it to the very ideals that its founders once invoked and made BNP relevant and popular, with the result that against many odds, BNP won the 1990 parliamentary election and thereafter made many transformative changes.
In late nineties, a phenomenon called “Hawa Bhaban” entered the BNP that destroyed BNP’s internal democratic architecture and replaced it with hero worship and self-seeking behaviour that sidelined the party’s idealism and compromised its collective purpose and transformed it from a party of collective purpose into a party of self-seeking opportunism.
Then, it suffered badly organizationally during the Hasina regime — Khaleda Zia was tried and convicted, allegedly, on false charges of theft and corruption. One of BNP’s key leaders, Salahuddin Kader Chowdhury, was tried, convicted and hanged, allegedly, on false charges of war crimes; and Khaleda Zia’s son, Tarique Rahman was also tried and convicted and given jail sentences again on dubious charges of corruption and murder.
These days, the BNP with its leader having passed away, the party’s core mission sidelined, and its current top leadership behaving and talking incoherently, has made one of Bangladesh’s leading political parties look more like a ship adrift.
Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami (BJI)
Among the current dominant political parties, the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami (BJI), a party which until recently was on the margin of Bangladesh’s political architecture, a party that was subjected to unimaginable repression during the Hasina regime where some of its leaders were hanged on charges of war crimes, has since reorganized itself and emerged as a leading contender in the upcoming election.
While one may not agree with its policies which many brand as “Islamic fundamentalist,” BJI certainly looks more organized and immensely better focused.
However, BJI’s problems are two, its past record of siding with anti-liberation forces and the perception that if BJI is in power it would introduce Sharia Law, marginalize women, and that if it comes to power, it will compromise Bangladesh’s secularist liberal character.
Clearly, BJI has an image problem which it needs to rectify, preferably through demonstrating clearly and emphatically, its unbinding commitment to liberal democracy, gender equity, and inclusion.
National Citizen Party (NCP)
Established by the Students Against Discrimination and the Jatiya Nagorik Committee, (National Citizen Committee), the National Citizen Party (NCP), a product of the student-led July/August 2024 revolution emerged as a new political party in Bangladesh since February 2025 that aims to establish a “second republic” and “build a fair system where people’s rights are protected, corruption and nepotism are eliminated, and wealth is shared more equally.”
While NCP’s hearts and minds are in the right place, the party is still evolving and is yet to become a full-fledged political party, organizationally as well as substantively.
The Awami League
Currently the activities of the Awami League are under suspension, but the party itself has not been banned and thus not sure whether the ban will be lifted in time for it to contest in the February 2026 election.
Notwithstanding, this may also be a good time to review Awami League, a party that led Bangladesh to independence. Indeed, the Awami League, once a party of hope, and freedom and a crusader of democracy (1956-1974), has since morphed into a party of cultic leadership, autocracy, kleptocracy, repression, extortion, and patronage distribution, the very flaws that prompted a student-led mass uprising in July/August 2024 and toppled it from the seat of power.
With most of its leaders self-exiled, in hiding and in jail and its supreme leader convicted of murder and sentenced to death, Awami League is in a state of disarray.
The sad part is that a party that experienced such mass wrath and massive debacles, events that should have prompted reflection, remorse, and correction, has done none of that so far.
Instead, the Awami League has opted for revenge and that too with external help. This is unhelpful.
If indeed, Awami League wishes to re-enter Bangladesh’s political arena which it should for without Awami League, history of Bangladesh is incomplete, it must reform itself within, find new and untainted leadership and more importantly, embrace democratic values within, and indeed, free itself of patron/client relationship to accede to and to stay in power.
Where to, now?
As is evident from the above, the current state of Bangladesh’s dominant political parties is anything but inspiring, nor is it conducive to steer Bangladesh to a democratic, secular, and inclusive society.
Holding elections in these circumstances as early as February 2026 would no doubt produce an elected government that people would vote for, but by no means the government they have wished for and on the contrary, recycle in the name of democracy, “rotating plundering governments.”
Thus, it is advisable that the IG does not hurry the election. Instead, it must consider to defer election by at least six months if not a year, and use the time to encourage the political parties to reform and promote in them democratic norms, values, and practices, and then hold the election and transition Bangladesh to “….a democratic state system that upholds rule of law and human rights and moral values …free from corruption and exploitation…”
M Adil Khan, is an academic and a former senior policy manager of the United Nations. Views expressed are the writer’s own.
