Home
+
The Awami League and the Jatiya Party have reached an agreement to share seats to fight for in the election amid the BNP’s boycott
Published : 18 Dec 2023, 02:08 AM
The Awami League’s strategy to allow its rebel leaders to run as independents in the Jan 7 vote has cleared a key hurdle after it reached agreements with its partners - the Jatiya Party and those from the 14-Party Alliance - on sharing seats as the BNP is bent on boycotting the balloting.
As many as 1,896 candidates have been cleared to contest the polls in 300 parliamentary constituencies, according to data published by the Election Commission after the end of the deadline for nomination withdrawal on Sunday.
They are set to hit the campaign trail on Monday after the electoral symbols are designated officially.
The Awami League has given free rein to its leaders running as independents to avoid criticisms it faced after more than half of the candidates were elected unopposed in the 2014 polls shunned by the BNP.
The opposition party contested the 2018 election, but after losing, it alleged widespread irregularities and decided not to take part in polls without a caretaker government.
As the Awami League refused its demand to step down, the BNP launched a series of hartals, or shutdowns, and transport blockades. But the protests appear to have very little effect on daily life despite arson attacks targeting vehicles.
As many as 1,567 candidates, including from only 12 registered parties, joined the election in 2014, while the number of parties in the election this time is 28.
To keep the Jatiya Party in the polls, the Awami League has agreed to leave 26 seats where the ruling party will support the Jatiya Party candidates.
It has also allowed six candidates of the 14-Party Alliance to run with the party’s boat symbol.
Although the BNP’s boycott has dampened the competition, the contest will be close in some constituencies with the rebel candidates of the Awami League vowing to fight for a win.
This trend among the independents poses the risk of violent confrontation, but no major incidents have been reported so far.
And even if the rebel candidates win, the Awami League will ultimately gain from the results.
‘SHARING POWER’
Senior BNP leader Abdul Moyeen Khan thinks the fate of the Jan 7 vote has been sealed through the negotiations between the Awami League and its allies.
“The results of this election have been fixed in Dhaka with the sharing of the votes. It’s not an election, but sharing of [the power] publicly,” said the member of the BNP’s policymaking body the National Standing Committee.
Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader said they did share seats with the Jatiya Party, but nothing was being done in breach of the law.
“And how can it be only sharing seats when 2,260 candidates [finally 1,896] from 28 political parties are contesting the election?” he asked.
Analyst Abdul Alim believes the strategy to make the election full of competition may work in some places, but overall it will fail to draw voters to the polling stations.
“The parties and the candidates are not depending on the voters. The parties are negotiating who will get how many seats. No one is thinking about the voters.
This is an election of sharing seats through negotiations. So, voters will have very little interest in casting their ballots,” he said.
He also thinks the fact that the heavyweight independent candidates belong to the Awami League will make it difficult to hold a credible election.
“There may be competition in some places, but overall the voters may not have interest in going to the polling stations.”
