Rift Within Bangladesh's Student-Led Party Widens Over Jamaat Alliance

Bangladesh's student-led National Citizen Party (NCP), born out of the 2024 July uprising that toppled Sheikh Hasina's government, is faced with a crisis over the party's alliance with Jamaat-e-Islami (JEI). 

Ahead of the February national elections, at least 30 party members have opposed the NCP's decision to ally with the JEI, citing the party's controversial past and “recent divisive activities.”

In a joint letter sent to NCP convener Nahid Islam, the dissenting members said the alliance with Jamaat contradicted the party's ideology, democratic values, and the spirit of the July Uprising.

The memorandum, titled “Principled objections to a potential alliance in light of the accountability of the July uprising and party values”, pointed to Jamaat's role during the 1971 Liberation War, when it opposed Bangladesh's independence and allegedly collaborated with the Pakistan army in genocide and war crimes.

The letter also accused Jamaat's student wing, Chhatra Shibir, of disrupting and sabotaging other parties, spreading misinformation, and trying to blame the NCP for incidents. The members warned that the alliance could harm the party's credibility and weaken public trust, especially among young supporters and those backing “new politics.”

The internal rift became public after senior leaders stepped down. Joint convener Tajnuva Jabeen announced her resignation and said she would not contest the upcoming elections. In a Facebook post, she said her decision was linked to objections over the party's alliance move, adding later that her concern was also with the process through which the alliance was formed. She said that after inviting nominations nationwide and selecting 125 aspirants, the NCP was now finalising seat-sharing for about 30 constituencies. “I have left NCP, not politics,” Tajnuva said.

Mahfuj Alam, described by interim government chief Muhammad Yunus as the “brain behind the whole revolution” of July 2024, said in a Facebook post that he would not be “part of this NCP” amid differences over the Jamaat-e-Islami alliance.

Senior joint member-secretary Tasnim Jara also resigned from her party post and announced she would contest the polls as an independent candidate from Dhaka-9. In a Facebook post, she wrote, “Due to the current political realities, I have decided not to contest the election as a candidate of any specific party or alliance.”

She added, “My dream was to enter parliament through the platform of a political party and serve the people of my constituency and the country.”

More NCP members may either defect to the rival Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) or contest the elections as independents, reports say.

The NCP has not yet made a formal announcement on the alliance. Jamaat-e-Islami chief Shafiqur Rahman announced at a press conference that the Liberal Democratic Party, led by former BNP-era minister Colonel (retired) Oli Ahmed, and the Nahid Islam-led NCP had joined a Jamaat-headed eight-party coalition. He said the alliance had nearly finalised its nomination list for all 300 constituencies. The NCP did not attend the briefing.

The NCP emerged as a political force earlier this year with the backing of interim government chief Muhammad Yunus, following the July Uprising led by students under the banner of Students Against Discrimination. Jamaat-e-Islami, which had been banned during Sheikh Hasina's tenure, returned to active politics after the ban was lifted last year under the interim government.