A new trend of polarization has surfaced in Bangladesh’s politics with Ershad’s Jatiya Party leaving the grand alliance led by the ruling Awami League.
The Independent learned from multiple sources on Sunday that the decision of former president HM Ershad to break away from its ruling coalition partners is final. “It’s now just a matter of time to quit the ruling Awami League-led 14-party grand alliance,” said a high-ranking leader of Jatiya Party preferring anonymity during an exclusive conversation.
The JP stalwart said during his meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the Jatiya Sangsad, Ershad told her they don’t want to remain with the ruling coalition anymore. The comments of the JP’s highly-placed source came just a day after Ershad said at a party function that they would not stay with the Awami League-led grand alliance and would leave it at an appropriate time.
Meanwhile, in another development, Gazipur District Unit of Jatiya Party on Saturday extended its support to the 18-party alliance-backed candidate Prof MA Mannan.
“We have been a victim of deprivation for too long. We don’t want to be deprived anymore. We have made up our mind finally,” the Jatiya Party leader quoted Ershad as saying.
Sources said that the Jatiya Party was not discussed about the appointment of the President, the Speaker and also selection of candidates for the city corporation elections in Rajshahi, Khulna, Barisal and Sylhet.
The organization was not consulted about the nomination of grand alliance candidate for Gazipur city corporation election either, the sources said adding that party chief HM Ershad discussed this matter as well with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
The former president also clearly told Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina during their meeting in parliament on Thursday that JP won’t support the 14-party backed candidate in the Gazipur City Corporation election.
Asked whether the Jatiya Party has a plan to join the 18-party opposition alliance led by the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), the JP source avoided a direct answer to the question by simply saying: “We leave it to the journalists to think over.”
Kazi Firoz Rashid, a senior presidium member of JP said they would like to form an alliance following the general election for the next government. “Our party will nominate candidates in all the 300 constituencies for the next elections,” he added.
Regarding the news of a meeting between opposition leader Khaleda Zia and the JP chief in Singapore that appeared in a section of press, Ershad told the party function that he went there for treatment but he was accused by some quarters of hatching a conspiracy. “Even if I had a meeting with the opposition leader, what would be wrong with that?,” Ershad raised a counter-question saying that “both the opposition leader and I are in politics. Besides, she is not my enemy.”
-With The Independent input
