Shawdesh Desk:

Major opposition BNP has started its process for forging a greater political platform of opposition political parties to oust the current Awami League government through a movement and realise their demand for holding the next parliamentary election under a neutral administration.

“We will try to forge a greater political unity soon. Discussions with the parties are yet to start formally. I hope we can start discussions with the opposition political parties in the current month,” BNP Standing Committee Member Jamiruddin Sircar told the Daily Sun.

BNP insiders said the party has assigned three of its senior leaders to contact the leaders of opposition political parties and fix possible date soon to start formal discussion with them.

The assigned leaders have already started homework for forging the greater political unity as they started informal discussion with the components of 20-party alliance and Jatiya Oikya Front about their plan for forging the greater unity, the sources said.

After informal discussion, the BNP will fix date, time and venue, and will send letters to the opposition parties for formal discussion, the sources added.

BNP standing committee in its last meeting held on Monday night virtually with party acting chairman Tarique Rahman in the chair discussed the progress of their activities regarding the greater unity and approved the decision.

A member of the party’s highest policymaking body, wishing not to be named, said they have started talking with the components of their two alliances at first in a bid to take decision about its link with Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, as the Islamist party is a big barrier for forging the greater platform.

He also said the BNP standing committee members have agreed to keep Jamaat out of the process of the greater political unity as the Islamist party may remain behind the scene of the initiative.

Another BNP leader said it has become difficult to cut link with the Jamaat as some political parties in the 20-party alliance are the followers of the Islamist party.

The BNP policymaking body in an emergency meeting held on January 28 virtually decided to launch a movement to realise their single-point demand for an election-time non-party government after forging a greater opposition platform.

However, the party is yet to decide on maintaining a relationship with Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, which is an obstacle for BNP to create a greater platform.

“We will hold discussions with the political parties about forging the greater unity. We will inform you about it when it starts,” BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir told the Daily Sun recently.

Asked about the strategy for their alliance with Jamaat, the party of war criminals, he said, “We will first discuss it with the parties, then we can say about it [what will be the position of Jamaat],” he added.

As part of their initiative, BNP standing committee member Gayeshwar Chandra Roy at his Nayapaltan office held a meeting with nine components of the 20-party alliance on February 4 and discussed their plan for forging the greater political platform and the next movement to realise the single-point demand.

Top leaders of the political parties – Shahadat Hossain, leader of Liberal Democratic Party, Lutfar Rahman of Jatiya Ganatantrik Party (Jagpa), Shaukat Amin of Islami Oikya Jote, Abu Taher of National Democratic Party, Mustafijur Rahman of Bangladesh Labour Party, Ehsanul Huda of Bangladesh Jatiya Dal, Nurul Islam of Samyabadi Dal and Julfikar Bulbul of Muslim League — were present in the meeting.

Talking to the Daily Sun, a leader of one of the political parties wishing not to be named said Gayeshwar Chandra Roy discussed the BNP’s plan for forging the unity.

“Jamaat is an obstacle to forging the greater political platform. That’s why the BNP is looking for a strategy to overcome this obstacle. If they take any step in the interest of unity, the 20-party partners should agree,” he added.

Talking to the Daily Sun, BNP standing committee member Khandaker Mosharraf said the party has decided to go for a single-point movement demanding an election-time non-party government. “BNP will forge simultaneous movement after forging a greater platform,” he added.

BNP insiders said the party wants to forge a greater platform with opposition political parties, including components of the 20-party alliance, Jatiya Oikya Front, Left Democratic Alliance, Bangladesher Samajtantrik Dal, Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB), Gana Odhikar Parishad, Islami Andolon Bangladesh and some social organisations and distinguished personalities of the country.

The party leaders are talking with leaders of different opposition parties secretly and carrying out informal discussion while they are also not disclosing the outcome of the meetings.

In their unofficial discussions, some opposition political parties already have expressed their objection to BNP’s ties with Jamaat and asked to cut relation with the Islamist party for the sake of the greater platform, the sources added.

“BNP has talked to us informally. But we didn’t get letter yet about any formal discussion for the greater unity,” Saiful Huq, coordinator of the Left Democratic Alliance, told the Daily Sun.

At a meeting of the party standing committee held on January 24, it finalised an 11-point draft political strategy for the greater unity and making the ground for a tough political movement.