DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — A new political party formed by the students who spearheaded an anti-government movement ousting former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday rallied in Bangladesh’s capital and pledged to build a new Bangladesh amid political uncertainty over the next election.
Separately, supporters of the student wing of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, or BNP, also held a rally in the capital, Dhaka, where party leaders also vowed to work to establish democracy following the fall of Hasina.
The rallies took place two days before the country’s interim government headed by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus is marking the anniversary of Hasina’s fall.
Hasina fled the country to India last Aug. 5 amid a mass uprising, ending her 15-year rule. Yunus took over three days later and pledged to restore order following weeks of violence that left hundreds killed and thousands injured.
The rallies reflect the shifting power dynamics in Bangladesh following Hasina’s dramatic ouster. With her Awami League banned and the political landscape fractured, the country is at a crossroads. The emergence of new political actors and unresolved tensions over the timing of the next election raise concerns about whether Bangladesh will move toward a stable, democratic transition — or slide into deeper political turmoil.
On Sunday, some 1,000 supporters of the student-led National Citizen Party rallied in front of the Shaheed Minar national monument in Dhaka, the capital, where its top leader Nahid Islam announced a 24-point agenda for a “new Bangladesh.”
“Exactly one year ago, at this Shaheed Minar (memorial), we vowed to free this country from the hands of dictatorship. By responding to that call, we together defeated the fascist rule and regained control of our country,” he said.
He said his party wanted a new constitution that would replace one adopted in 1972 after Bangladesh was born under the leadership of independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Hasina’s father. Bangladesh had just fought a nine-month war to gain its independence from Pakistan.
“Let us all unite and transform this historic 24-point agenda into reality to build a new Bangladesh — a Bangladesh that fulfills the dreams of all citizens, as we move toward the formation of our second republic,” he said.
Also on Sunday, thousands of supporters of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s student wing rallied elsewhere in the city. Tarique Rahman, acting chairman of the party, asked his supporters to seek support from young voters in the next election. Rahman has been in exile in London since 2008 and joined Sunday’s rally online. He is expected to return to the country before the next elections.
Bangladesh has been at a crossroads since Hasina’s ouster and the interim government has been struggling to restore order with allegations of failure in controlling mob violence and maintaining human rights.