Shawdesh Desk:

The ruling Awami League is encouraging the party’s ‘dummy and rebel candidates’ in the 12th national election to make it look competitive as major opposition parties, including the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, are set to boycott it.

Several AL nomination hopefuls, who attended a meeting at the prime minister’s official residence in Ganabhaban hours before the party announced its candidates on Sunday, told New Age that the prime minister had directed them to ensure no one could win the election unopposed.

They said that party president Sheikh Hasina directed the party leaders to ensure ‘dummy candidates’ in all 300 constituencies.

She warned party leaders that she would take action against those who would win uncontested in the next elections, they said, referring to the 2014 general election when 153 candidates were declared winners without participating in it.

AL general secretary Obaidul Quader said on Monday that permission for party leaders to run as independent candidates in the upcoming general election was a strategic decision.

‘Awami League is moving forward, changing strategy as per the need of the hour. There is no bar to dummy candidates following the guidelines of the party chief [Sheikh Hasina],’ said Quader.

Quader came up with the remarks after paying homage to Shamsul Alam Khan Milon, marking Shaheed Dr Milon Day on Dhaka University premises.

Following the directives of the prime minister on Sunday and the party’s  general secretary on Monday, many AL leaders and nomination seekers decided to participate in the polls as independent candidates.

‘I collected the nomination paper today [Monday] and will contest the election as an independent candidate from Kusthia-1 constituency following our leader Sheikh Hasina’s directives,’ said AL Kutshia district unit member Rezaul Haque Chowdhury.

‘Our leader told us that there was no bar on becoming an independent candidate,’ said Rezaul, also an independent lawmaker in the 10th parliament for Kushtia-1.

Hours after the party announced the list of AL official candidates on Sunday, former AL Demra Thana unit general secretary Moshiur Rahman Mollah Shajal told New Age he would contest from the Dhaka-5 constituency as an independent candidate.

‘I decided today to contest in the polls after hearing the speech of the party general secretary, as the party will not consider us rebels if we contest the election as an independent candidate,’ said Sajal, the son of former AL lawmaker Habibur Rahman Mollah.

After the announcement came that the party would be liberal about rebel candidates, a large number of AL leaders from different constituencies declared that they would contest the polls as independent candidates.

Of them, Moniruzzaman Monir, a member of the central sub-committee on the liberation war of the Awami League, announced on Monday that he would contest from Jhalkathi-1 seat against incumbent AL lawmaker and the party’s official candidate, Bazlul Haque Harun.

Former Juba League leader Syed Sayedul Haque Sumon told reporters that he would contest in the polls as an independent candidate for Habiganj-4 against the AL-nominated candidate Mahbub Ali.

Kushtia district unit AL former general secretary Parvez Anwar Tanu announced that he would contest the polls as an independent candidate from Kushtia-3 against AL joint secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif.

Rajbari Sadar Upazila Parishad chairman Imdadul Haque Biswas resigned on Monday to participate in the parliamentary polls from Rajbari-1 against the AL candidate Kazi Keramat Ali.

He submitted his resignation to the local government minister on Monday.

He was a three-time upazila chairman from AL.

Jashore district unit Awami League president Shahidul Islam on Monday declared that he would contest the polls as an independent candidate from the Jashore-3 constituency against the current lawmaker and AL official candidate Kazi Nabil Ahmed.

Former AL lawmaker Abdur Rauf declared that he would contest the polls as an independent candidate from Kushtia-4 against AL official candidate Selim Altaf George.

AL industry and commerce affairs sub-committee member S Ayesha Akhtar Jahan, actress Mahiya Mahi, and AL Rajshahi unit relief and social welfare affairs secretary Aktaruzzaman Akter announced on Monday to contest in the next Jatiya Sangsad elections as independent candidates, New Age Staff Correspondent in Rajshahi reported.

Several AL leaders seeking anonymity told New Age that they fear possible violence and an increase in intraparty conflict due to this decision to allow rebel candidates in the polls.

Referring to recent elections to local government bodies, they said that infightings made the party’s grassroots vulnerable due to internal clashes.

‘No scope for violence, as there is a difference between ‘dummy and independent candidates’ and rebel candidates,’ AL presidium member Abdur Rahman told New Age.

He said that the dummy candidates would contest elections to make them participatory.

‘The decision was taken so that no one could win unopposed,’ he added.

On Sunday, AL announced the names of the party’s official candidates, dropping 71 current lawmakers, including three state ministers.

AL sold 3,362 nomination forms this year and earned Tk 16.81 crore by selling nomination papers for the next polls.

AL’s preparation for the forthcoming election is in full swing at a time when the leaders and activists of the main opposition BNP and its allies keep facing arrest, raids, prosecution, and conviction.