In the first few weeks and months of the new post-August 5 reality in Bangladesh's political landscape, the BNP had emerged almost universally as the lifeline of the country's political establishment. By presenting itself as an established, institutional force that had experience in governing the country, and that could be relied upon to provide nationwide leadership on the strength of a proven support base. The party had more than supported the frontline leadership of students in last year's July Uprising, and likes to claim that the fall of the authoritarian regime on August 5th had been 15 years in the making - the implication being that the BNP had led most of it, as the main opposition to the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League regime.

The students who had led the 36-day movement that finally did topple the Awami regime from the forefront, looked mostly happy to give BNP the leading role in the political project to rebuild Bangladesh after 15 years of a highly repressive regime. They also never concealed the fact that they were working away at launching their own political platform, that found fruition on the last day of February, in the form of the quite grand launch of the National Citizens Party, or NCP. BNP meanwhile, won points for acting with maturity in the aftermath of the Awami League's spectacular collapse - it didn't vie for power immediately, and was generally speaking the language of reforms, for which it stood ready to show patience and do everything necessary to prop up the interim government led by Dr Muhammad Yunus.

The party's acting chairman, Tarique Rahman, positioned himself as the voice of reason and assurance, even as he spoke only virtually from his London exile - which surely cannot count as government-imposed anymore. Time and again he said clearly and unequivocally: "The interim government cannot be allowed to fail," he said. Tarique is also still naturally inclined to own the success of the July Uprising. It is worth noting his call to the BNP's own student front, the JCD, to join the Quota Reform Movement went out as early as July 15. Indeed, a JCD activist, Waseem Akram, was among the first six martyrs of the movement, the same fateful day as Abu Sayeed over in Rangpur, on July 16.

The party's secretary general, the redoubtable Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir remains a credit to the overall political firmament in Bangladesh, and even Begum Khaleda Zia making a remarkable recovery, the party seemed poised to regain power via the next election. And it even laid out its vision for a so-called 'nationalist' government that it would no doubt lead, as its preferred vision for the first elected government in post-Fascist Bangladesh. The students and old partners Jamaat e Islami would be BNP's natural allies in such a dispensation.

But then something visibly, and quite obviously, shifted in the winter months. Both Jamaat, and the students, suddenly discovered the voice to question the silent arrangements that had come in, or forced their way through. One of these happened to be the assumption that BNP was the natural successor, or the next chapter, in Bangladesh people's quest for a stable democracy. It became clear that in the new Bangladesh, there would be no room for any 'holy cows'. The assumption that power must necessarily pass to the BNP next, had become one such holy cow.

Old habits die hard

As the students got nearer and nearer to the official launch of NCP, more and more of their activists, feeling either embattled or emboldened, could be seen attacking the BNP, and even veering into criticising the BNP for "failing to control its grassroots", resulting in factional clashes and attacks carried out on its rivals.

"We have been noticing that the BNP central leadership has no control at the local level," the NCP said in a statement last week.

"It's right that the central leaders frequently speak out against attacks for political reasons and expel disobedient and criminal activists, but violent activities continue. This is making the country's political situation confusing and unstable," said the NCP, urging the BNP central leaders to take effective measures against crime, extortion, and illegal grabbing.

The statement, signed by NCP Joint Member Secretary Saleh Uddin Sifat, came in the wake of an attack on Azizur Rahman Bachchu Mollah, the father of NCP Central Joint Convenor Mahbub Alam Mahir.

Azizur's hand was broken and he suffered severe injuries in the attack during a clash between local factions of Chhatra Dal and Swechchhasebak Dal on March 30 at Ramganj upazila in Lakshmipur, the statement said.

In another attack on March 24 in Noakhali's Hatia, some BNP activists attacked NCP Joint Chief Coordinator Abdul Hannan Masud during a public meeting, the statement said. The NCP alleged that BNP leaders and activists in various places across the country were regularly intimidating NCP activists with threats of "taking revenge after seven or eight months".

"It is unclear to the NCP what kind of reality will be created by local BNP men after seven or eight months that will allow them to take revenge," the new party said. This latest statement represented an escalation in its criticisms of the BNP as 'the other side of the same coin' as the Awami League.

Obstacle to reforms?

On March 23, the BNP submitted its opinions to the National Consensus Commission regarding key recommendations from the five reform commissions. Rather than providing a simple 'Yes' or 'No' response, the party presented its views in a separate column for each recommendation.

The BNP does not support reducing the Prime Minister's powers, as reflected in its feedback to the National Consensus Commission on the five reform commissions' recommendations. It opposes the proposed National Constitutional Council (NCC) for appointing officials to key constitutional bodies, favoring a legal framework where the Prime Minister retains appointment authority.

BNP disagrees with term limits restricting a person to two terms as Prime Minister, instead proposing a break between three consecutive terms. It also rejects reducing the government's term to four years, insisting on maintaining five years.

BNP opposes constitutional amendments via referendums and prefers parliamentary decisions. It does not support barring individuals accused by the International Crimes Tribunal from elections, arguing that eligibility laws do not need immediate revision. The party maintains that the Prime Minister should exercise executive authority per the constitution and sees no need to change the system.

Even though the BNP has agreed to the reform proposal for reinstating the caretaker government system to oversee the upcoming national election, the party insists on maintaining the previous 90-day tenure instead of the 120-day period proposed by the Electoral System Reform Commission.

"The caretaker government system is an exceptional measure in the context of Bangladesh's realities. It is a constitutional provision designed to enable the state to be run by elected representatives of the public. So, in this regard, it is preferable to have a caretaker government for a 90-day period, as was the case in the past," the party said in response to the reform recommendation made by the Electoral System Reform Commission.

In its recent submission to the National Consensus Commission, the BNP also said the main responsibility of the caretaker government is to ensure the conduct of a fair and credible national election. "So, its role should be limited to arranging the national parliamentary elections, and no other elections should be held during its 90-day tenure.

The Electoral System Reform Commission recommended a four-month caretaker government system to oversee the national election as well as all local government elections within its tenure.

The National Consensus Commission, led by Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus, began its work on February 15, 2025, with the aim of building consensus on the state reform recommendations put forward by the five reform commissions.

The commission identified key recommendations from the reports of the five reform commissions-the Constitution Reform Commission, the Public Administration Reform Commission, the Electoral System Reform Commission, the Judiciary Reform Commission, and the ACC Reform Commission-to solicit opinions from political parties.

Subsequently, the Consensus Commission sent a spreadsheet containing 166 recommendations to 38 political parties, requesting their specific opinions on the most important reform proposals.

Regarding the 27 reform recommendations related to the electoral system, the BNP partially agreed with 8 to 9 of them. For many of the remaining recommendations, the party either disagreed or stated that they are constitutionally significant and should be decided by an elected parliament.

The Electoral Reform Commission, in its recommendations, proposed that the caretaker government should be granted the authority to reform necessary laws and rules, as well as to reshuffle the administration beyond its routine functions, in order to ensure fair, impartial and credible elections.

The BNP strongly opposed this recommendation, arguing that it pertains to constitutional matters. "Administrative reshuffling is a routine duty of the caretaker government. There is no scope for this government to undertake any other responsibilities beyond its routine functions during the election period."

The Electoral Reform Commission also suggested the establishment of a permanent National Constitutional Council to finalise the appointment of the head of the caretaker government. Following this, the head of the caretaker government would appoint an additional 20 advisers.

Regarding the recommendation, the BNP said the issue also pertains to constitutional reform. Since it involves a fundamental change, the party argued that an elected national parliament, which has the power to amend the Constitution with a two-thirds majority vote, should make the appropriate decision on this matter.

On the matter of holding local government elections before the national election during the polls-time government, the BNP said the primary responsibility of the caretaker or interim government is to conduct the national election, not the local government elections.

"Whenever the National Parliament is dissolved, it is essential to hold parliamentary elections within 90 days. So, there is no scope for holding local government elections before the National Parliament elections under the caretaker government, the party said.

The BNP also opposed the proposal to establish a permanent independent authority for the delimitation of constituencies, stating that constituency delimitation is a key constitutional responsibility of the Election Commission. "So, creating a separate authority for this task would lead to dual authorities and administrative complexities, which is undesirable."

About the commission's proposal to establish a permanent National Constitutional Council (NCC) for appointments to all constitutional bodies, including the Election Commission, the BNP rejected it, arguing that the formation of such a council appears to contradict the constitution.

The commission proposed that if Election Commissioners fail to perform their duties or violate their oath, a parliamentary committee would investigate and recommend actions to the President. In response, the BNP argued that the Election Commission is an independent constitutional body and should not be accountable to a parliamentary committee, cautioning against any actions that could undermine its independence.

The Commission has proposed to include registered political parties in the Right to Information Act 2009 and BNP agreed in principle with this proposal.

The BNP also opposed the proposal to amend the International Crimes Tribunal and the RPO to prevent those accused of crimes against humanity from participating in parliamentary elections, saying the qualifications and disqualifications of candidates for national parliamentary elections are already outlined in the constitution and the RPO.

The party also noted that any attempt to disqualify those accused of atrocities, including the killing of countless students, women, and children, would require necessary constitutional amendments.

About the recommendation to limit a prime minister's tenure to a maximum of two terms, the BNP highlighted that its 31-point reform proposal included a commitment to amend the Constitution to impose a maximum of two consecutive terms. On the suggestion to disqualify a two-time elected prime minister from becoming president, the party stated that this is a matter of constitutional reform.

The reform commission also proposed that the same person should not hold the positions of party chief, prime minister, and Leader of the House simultaneously. But, the BNP disagreed, arguing that the leader of the majority party in Parliament naturally assumes the roles of both the Leader of the House and the prime minister.

"It is essential for accountability in parliamentary politics. Besides, this decision is within the discretion of the party concerned," the BNP opined. About the recommendation to establish a 100-seat upper house in the parliament, the party said the issue was incorporated in its 31-point agenda.

"We agree with the establishment of an upper house. But it is essential to determine the procedure, system, the number of seats, its jurisdiction and different issues by an elected parliament," the party said.

The party also agreed with the suggestion to pick the deputy speaker from the opposition party, but said this system should be implemented by an elected parliament.

About the recommendation to form the lower house with 400 representatives elected through direct votes, BNP said the issue can be considered by an elected parliament after proper assessment.

In sync?

After the BNP's rather meek reform proposals drew a storm of criticism from different actors, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir accused certain groups of misrepresenting the party's stance on reforms on social media.

"There is a deliberate campaign that the BNP wants the election before reforms, or the BNP is against reforms. This is misleading the public. We have always advocated reforms," he said.

"Many are misunderstanding our stance. We never said the election should come first, and then reforms. We have always maintained that a minimum level of reform is necessary to ensure a free and fair election."

While responding to a question during a meeting with local journalists at his residence in the Kalibari area of Thakurgaon town over Eid ul Fitr, Fakhrul emphasised three key areas for reforms: the electoral system, law enforcement, and the judiciary.

"The current demand for reforms was originally put forward by the BNP," he claimed. "The proposals submitted by the reform commissions are not different from the BNP's 31-point outline.

"We have clearly stated our stance on constitutional reforms. There are certain issues that have already been settled, and we do not wish to interfere with them."

Regarding actions against party members accused of various crimes, Fakhrul asserted that the BNP does not condone such activities.

"Some party members have engaged in wrongdoing, and we have already taken action against them. In some cases, we have dissolved committees and expelled the leaders involved in such incidents," he said.

Fakhrul dismissed concerns about the possibility of a conflict between political parties regarding trials of people from the previous regime, reforms, and the election.

"There is no fear of conflict due to differing opinions. The beauty of democracy is the diversity of thought. Where will democracy be if all political parties share the same views? Different parties will have different opinions, and the people will decide which is the best for them," he said.

The coming days will demonstrate whether the party itself is able to uphold its commitment to the democratic ethos.