Who is AL's ideological friend?

Following an emergency meeting at the party’s central office on 11 August, ruling Awami League’s general secretary Obaidul Quader came up with a remark on the AL-led 14-party alliance. Who knows whether this was a hint of new steps in national politics. He said, “Our alliance is an electoral alliance; a strategic alliance. There is no ideology in it. Otherwise, why have we formed an alliance with the Jatiya Party (JaPa)? These things must be thought.”

The question that follows is – which one is the Awami League’s ideological alliance? Who is the party’s ideological friend? Regarding this, I could recall what AL’s deceased general secretary Abdul Jalil once said. He said the 14-party alliance will demonstrate, contest election and form the government together. Prior to the general election in 2018, AL formed government with the allies of 14-party – was that a mere strategic approach? In the past, Awami League formed alliance many a time highlighting ideological and strategic theories. And, left the alliance.

Now, whatever Obaidul Quader says, the 14-party alliance emerged as an “ideological” alliance against the government formed by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its ally Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami. They announced a 23-point programme from a rally at Paltan on 22 November 2005. The points include reforming the election commission; ensuring free and fair election free from black money, terrorism and communalism; establishing a non-communal democratic government; removing the ultra-communal forces from all levels of the government and administration to save the country from the grip of that forces; trial of the war criminals; banning communal politics and stopping interference on the freedom of religion, free thinking and conscience. Wasn’t there any ideology behind all these?

As of now the AL leaders have been claiming the 14-party as a pro-liberation war force. Now they are saying that the 14-party alliance was not an ideological alliance. Then who are their ideological allies? With whom the Awami League wants to form an alliance?

Significant promises of the 14-party alliance included establishment of a non-communal Bangladesh along with ensuring rights for the religious and racial minorities. Nonetheless, in the Awami League regime itself, incidents of attack and torture on them keep recurring frequently. During Durga Puja last year, temples and mandaps at different places across the country were damaged. But, no one has been punished in any of those yet. A former minister of the Awami League government had threatened to take out the eyes of Hindu Bouddha Christian Oikya Parishad general secretary. There are allegations of grabbing houses and lands of minorities against many Awami League leaders.

The ideological differences between Awami League general secretary and the allies of 14-party become evident when these are analysed. No matter how much vulnerable the political or organisational position of the allies is none can accuse them of doing communal politics.

In fact prior to the 2018 election, Rashed Khan Menon from Workers Party and Hasanul Haq Inu from JSD held responsibilities of vital ministries. Even Dilip Barua was a minister too, in the 2009-14 term. If the 14-party alliance is not the ideological alliance of Awami League, how did they run the government together?

Leaders of the 14-party alliance have criticised different policies and programmes of the government even before. The question of ideological or non-ideological alliance didn’t arise when they were criticising especially the changes in textbooks on Hefazat-e-Islam’s demand, the case filed in connection to the Shapla Chattar incident not being investigated or tried, Awami League’s unrecorded political bond with Hefazat leaders etc. So, is the purpose of bringing up the issue of ideology is to stop the little bit of criticism being done by the alliance partners?

A serious allegation against Awami League is that they can form an alliance with any party for their own gain. And, deny recognising the allies, once the need is served. Following 1975, NAP and CPB were the primary allies of Awami League in the field of politics. Towards the end of Ziaur Rahman’s regime, the 9-party alliance was created with JSD and some other parties. They formed the 15-party alliance during the Ershad’s regime. However, being unable to reap the benefits of that alliance after Ershad’s downfall, Awami League relied on going solo policy.

They also organised movement together with Jatiya Party (JaPa) and Jamat-e-Islami with the demand of caretaker government during the first term of Khaleda Zia’s government. After the 1996 election it was found that Awami League doesn’t have the majority to form a government. They then formed coalition government with Jatiya Party and JSD faction, led by ASM Rab.

JSD president Hasanul Haq Inu once said in response to Awami League’s criticsm, “We might be one-sixteenth while you occupy the rest. But you won’t be able to form government without that one-sixteenth. You’ll have to remain on streets.” What can be the outcomes of contesting elections separately, Awami league got proofs of that in the seventh national parliament.

Awami League claims to be a secular party and claims the credit for reinstating secularism as a principle in the constitution. However, all the Islamic parties there are in Bangladesh, most of them had been and still are under the shelter of Awami League and their tactical ally Jatiya Party.

Prior to the 2018 elections, Prothom Alo had done an investigative report on the stand of the Islamic parties. It showed that several Islamic parties that were close to BNP once have formed alliance with Awami League. Including registered and unregistered ones, there were 70 active Islamic parties and organisations at that time. 29 of them are in alliance with Awami League either directly or indirectly. 32 parties are with Jatiya Party. Meanwhile, five parties were in alliance with BNP.

Keeping the 30 December election of 2018 ahead, a new alliance named Sammilita Islami Jote was formed. Chairman of this alliance Maulana Jafarullah Khan, had long been the secretary general of Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan, established by Maulana Mohammad Ullah Hafezzi Hujur. The alliance wanted to participate in the election through an understanding with Awami League. Leaders of the alliance also met with Awami League general secretary Obaidul Quader at the party president’s office in Dhanmodi. (Prothom Alo, 25 November, 2018)

The question is who will be Awami League’s tactical and ideological ally in the 2023 election? Will Awami League form an ideological alliance with jatiya Party and pro-Islamic parties maintaining ‘tactical relations’ with 14-party? They have joined forces with Hefajat-e-Islam long ago to stop Jamaat-e-Islami.

* Sohrab Hassan is joint editor of Prothom Alo and a poet. He can be contacted at [email protected]

* This column appeared in the online and print edition of Prothom Alo and has been rewritten for the English edition by Shameem Reza and Nourin Ahmed Monisha