Politics of the country is witnessing a rather unusual shift, as Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and Islami Andolan Bangladesh – once bitter rivals – have decided to embrace each other by forming an electoral alliance to demonstrate their strength in the lead up to the 13th parliamentary elections slated for the first half of February next year.
Apparently, few realisations have prompted the two religion-based parties to come closer gradually narrowing their long-standing ideological gap.
Leaders of both the parties are now of the opinion that it is not possible to do well in the national politics should they remain divided. They believe that there is no alternative to political strength to force larger political parties to give in to their demands.
Besides, the idea of jointly fielding candidates in the upcoming parliamentary elections to exert pressure on the BNP has also played a key role in this unity.
According to top leaders Jamaat and Islami Andolan, the public interest in Islamist parties is increasing due to the failures of the mainstream political parties. That is why they are forming unity which will serve as a special force.
Ahsanul Mahboob Zubair, assistant secretary general of Jamaat and head of the party’s media and publicity section, says, “The unity among the Islamic parties is not intended to merely go to power. If there is an alliance, a kind of strength works to achieve various demands, including votes. With that thought, Jamaat, Islami Andolan and many others are on the same page.”
A background study of this unusual alliance finds that these parties think traditional political parties use Islamic parties as a stepping stone to power. When the need is over, the leaders of the parties are being subjected to torture. Since the desire of each of the religious parties is to establish an Islamic system of governance in the country, the parties are emphasizing unity by making concessions on ideological issues.
In this regard, the parties are bringing forward several examples from the recent past. According to them, in the nearly 15 and a half years of Awami League rule, Islamic scholars of all sects in the country have been victims of attacks and cases on various issues.
In particular, on 5 May 2013, after the crackdown of the Hefazat-e-Islam at the Shapla square in Motijheel in the capital, scholars of both the Qaumi and Aliya sects were arrested, remanded and tortured. After that incident, the Islamists started thinking anew.
Then, after the fall of the Awami League government on August 5 last year, the position of the Islamists in the country began to get firm in the particular political situations. Jamaat and the Islami Andolan became active in using the positive role of the parties in the mass uprising.
Despite strong objections to the ‘Maududi ideology’, leaders of various Islamic parties, including ‘Qawmi’ scholars, continued to respond to Jamaat’s call. Islami Andolan also started meetings and seminars with a view to forge an electoral unity and reduce the ideological gap.
Gazi Ataur Rahman, senior joint secretary general of Islami Andolan and the party spokesperson, told TIMES of Bangladesh, “In the past, when the country was governed by the three major parties, the common people were disappointed with injustice, irregularities and extortion. The people are now leaning towards the Islamists. From that point on, we are forming an alliance or electoral alliance with other parties including Jamaat. Our unity, united votes and the decision to launch a simultaneous program on the last five demands have received a huge response.”
The meeting between Jamaat Ameer Shafiqur Rahman and Islami Andolon Bangladesh Ameer and Charmonai Pir Syed Muhammad Rezaul Karim on 21 January at the latter’s place in Barisal was a turning point in the unity of the two parties. In addition, the presence of the top leaders of the two parties in the national rallies of Jamaat and Islami Andolan in Dhaka on 19 July and 28 June respectively has taken the unity process forward.
Until 5 August, Jamaat leaders used to make remarks calling Islami Andolan an ‘ally of the Awami League’. Again, the intense statements made by the Nayeb Ameer of Islami Andolan Syed Muhammad Faizul Karim against Jamaat were always topics of discussions. The two parties used to call each other ‘enemies of Islam’.
However, after the fall of the government, the leaders of both parties have moved away from making such statements after they shared podiums recurrently at the political events. Recently, Jamaat Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar strongly protested the controversial comments of a leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) about Charmonai Pir. And, Charmonai Pir and the Ameer of the Islam Andolan expressed excitement over the victory of Bangladesh Islami Chhatrashibir in the elections to students’ unions of two universities.
The two political parties, registered under the Election Commission, are now active in the political sphere of the country to press home their various demands. They are also vocal on election issues. The outright victory of Chhatrashibir in the elections to students’ unions of two major universities has made them more optimistic. They now aim to deliver surprising results in the next parliamentary elections with joint votes.
Top leaders of these two parties have a strategy to put pressure on their big opponent BNP with alliance candidates. If the votes of the two parties go in one box, the leaders and activists of Jamaat and Islami Andolan believe that the other party can be challenged in many seats.
