Dhaka, Apr 17 (bdnews24.com) – The new, extended coalition led by the BNP will emerge on Wednesday.
Party chief Khaleda Zia will formally announce the expansion at 3:30pm at the capital's Institution of Diploma Engineer' auditorium, her press secretary Maruf Kamal Khan told bdnews24.com.
Khan, however, declined to comment on the probable name of the coalition.
But he would not say what the new combine would be called.
At the opposition's Mar 12 rally, Khaleda had announced extension of the four-party coalition.
She did not name the newly extended coalition. Leaders of the four parties, however, said name of the new alliance might be 'Sammilita Ganatantrik Jote'. But this name can be changed, they said.
Secretary general of Islami Oikya Jote Abdul Latif Nezami and joint secretary general of Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Shahadat Hossain Selim told bdnews24.com on Tuesday that the invitation card to the programme mentions the new coalition as '16 Party Coalition'.
Selim said, "We earlier had proposed the new coalition to be named as 'Sammilita Ganatantrik Jote' so that other political parties can join in."
"We have no say," he said, "since the alliance leader (Khaleda) was to name it (the extended coalition)."
Nezami said a meeting is due Tuesday night at the BNP chief's Gulshan office with the four-party and other like-minded parties to discuss the preparations of the new alliance.
The BNP-led alliance was formed in 1999 to strengthen the movement against then Awami League-led government.
At present, Jamaat-e-Islami, Islami Oikya Jote, Bangladesh Jatiya Party (BJP), Jamiyate Ulamaye Islam and Khilafat Majlish are members of the BNP-led alliance.
It is rumoured that Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), Kalyan Party, Jatiya Ganatantrik Party (JaGPa), National People's Party (NPP), Bangladesh Labour Party, National Democratic Party (NDP), Bangladesh NAP, Muslim League, Islamic Party and National Awami Party (NAP-Bhasani) are joining the the alliance.
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