Bangladesh’s student-led party forms alliance with Jamaat-e-Islami; expert calls tie-up ‘opportunistic’

Bangladesh’s student-led outfit National Citizen Party (NCP) has formed an alliance with Islamist group Jamaat-e-Islami ahead of elections slated for February 12 next year. NCP was formed by youth leaders who played a pivotal role in the 2024 July Revolution that led to the ouster of then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

A number of high-ranking leaders in the party have opposed the move, while several others quit the party to contest independently. The main leader of last year’s violent uprising in Bangladesh, Mahfuz Alam, distances himself from the NCP in a Facebook post. Tasnim ‌Jara, a doctor who left a career in Britain to join the party, also resigned and said she would contest the election as an independent candidate.

The development comes in the backdrop of acting chairman of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Tarique Rahman, filing his nomination papers for polls.

The NCP was formed in February, this year, and portrayed itself as a pro-democratic force to end the two-party dominance of Hasina’s Awami League (AL) and the BNP, who have traditionally formed governments in the South Asian country.

Although impactful during the revolution, the electoral future of the party seemed bleak in opinion polls. A survey conducted earlier in December by a US-based think tank showed the NCP in a distant third place with 6 per cent support, behind the BNP at 30 per cent and Jamaat at 26 per cent, news agency Reuters reported.

The Awami League, which was the major political force in the country, was banned in May, while Hasina was sentenced to death by the country’s International Crimes Tribunal (ICT-BD) in November.

The NCP’s alliance with Jamaat has come under fire as the Islamist party has long faced criticism for opposing Bangladesh’s independence from Pakistan in 1971 and its alleged role in war crimes.

Dr Sanjay K Bhardwaj, professor at the School of International Studies, New Delhi-based Jawaharlal Nehru University, says the alliance is “more opportunistic than ideological”.

Outlining the background of the student-led uprising, Bhardwaj said: “The student movement emerged from deep frustration—over unemployment, corruption, authoritarian governance, and a winner-takes-all political system. The movement sought democratic reform. However, there was reemergence of other political forces that had remained dormant, including Islamist groups.”

“Ideologically, the NCP and Jamaat are fundamentally different. Jamaat positions itself as a custodian of Islamic principles, while the NCP frames itself as a democratic, anti-corruption force. Their alliance is not ideological but opportunistic, driven by a shared political objective: countering BNP’s electoral dominance,” Bhardwaj said.

The Jamaat had not been allowed to contest any elections since 2013, after a court declared its registration as a political party conflicting with Bangladesh’s secular constitution.

However, the interim government led by chief adviser Muhammad Yunus revoked the restrictions on the party in August 2024.

Noting the possibility of BNP’s return to power after nearly two decades, Bhardwaj said that “no government in Bangladesh can afford to ignore India due to deep economic, geographic, and security interdependence.”

Tarique Rahman, the son of former Bangladeshi president Ziaur Rahman and ex-Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, returned to Bangladesh last week after a 17-year exile and filed his nomination papers on Monday.

BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman waves to supporters upon his return. (PTI Photo)

“Even if BNP returns to power, relations with India will continue, though China may gain greater influence. Pakistan’s role, however, will remain limited,” he added.

On the other hand, former PM Hasina has remained in India since her ouster in 2024. The interim government in Bangladesh called her death sentence a “historic verdict,” and asked the Indian government to hand her over.

India has not formally responded to Dhaka’s demands.