To ally or not to ally: NCP suffers Hamlet-esque indecision as election nears 

With national elections around the corner, parties across Bangladesh are deep into constituency-level organising. The National Citizen Party (NCP), born in the aftermath of the July Uprising, remains conspicuously absent, while BNP and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami have finalised most of their candidates and are already campaigning full throttle.

For weeks, NCP has been negotiating with both BNP and Jamaat after initially promising to contest independently. The uncertainty has created a limbo for its candidates. The party’s decision announcement could come as early as this week, potentially clearing the way for candidates to finally hit the campaign trail, party insiders say.

During a press conference yesterday, the party convener, Nahid Islam, reiterated that NCP will not compromise for power or seats and plans to contest all 300 constituencies. The party sold 1,484 nomination forms before closing submissions on 20 November.

“We will never compromise for positions or constituencies,” Nahid Islam said, “If we enter into any kind of alliance or discussion with anyone, we are fully prepared to speak openly about it. There is nothing secret here. We are participating in internal and informal discussions. This is part of a democratic culture. We ask the media to report these discussions fairly and without distortion.” 

Pointing indirectly to BNP and Jamaat, he warned that pre-arranged alliances or manipulated elections would threaten Bangladesh’s democracy and the aspirations born from the July Uprising.

NCP Chief Coordinator Nasiruddin Patwary also confirmed to The Business Standard that negotiations are ongoing: “BNP is democratic in principle but has issues with extortion and transparency, while Jamaat is more transparent but not internally democratic. We’re weighing where the match is strongest.”

One Dhaka-based nomination seeker, speaking anonymously, told TBS, “The party will ally with BNP or Jamaat eventually, but we can’t move without the party’s signal. If the alliance changes, our constituency may change too.”

If we enter into any kind of alliance or discussion with anyone, we are fully prepared to speak openly about it. There is nothing secret here. We are participating in internal and informal discussions. This is part of a democratic culture. We ask the media to report these discussions fairly and without distortion.

Nahid Islam Convenor, National Citizen Party

Though party leaders insist that the July Charter’s core principles — democratic practice, organisational transparency, zero extortion, and reform — will guide any alliance, several NCP leaders confirmed that seat-sharing is the real battleground. NCP is negotiating with Jamaat for roughly 50 seats, while talks with BNP focus on a far smaller target of about 20.

A senior NCP leader hinted that talks with BNP “haven’t moved much,” making Jamaat the more likely partner. Yet he admitted resistance within the party: “Many leaders don’t want a Jamaat alliance. But BNP won’t give seat concessions. Jamaat is willing to give around 50. This debate is tearing through the party.”

Several party leaders fear that indecisiveness could see NCP contenders drift into three camps —BNP, Jamaat, and those preparing to run independently— potentially prompting informal defections to parties that align with their personal ambitions.

Many potential NCP contenders expressed dissatisfaction towards the top leaders, saying they feel stuck, unable to meet local organisers, knock on doors, or even introduce themselves to voters. If a seat-sharing deal shifts them to alternate constituencies, early campaigning would be wasted. 

Patwary said that the party will start with announcing the first 100 candidates, prioritising “honest, credible, and dedicated individuals” while excluding anyone involved in what Patwary called “Hasina’s staged 2024 election.”

For NCP, the stakes are high. The July Uprising that birthed the party represented a break in political norms, opening space for new actors. Today, delays risk neutralising its front-liners. In a year of rapidly shifting alignments, NCP’s final decision could reshape the emerging political order set in motion by the uprising.