The long-standing allies of the anti-Awami League political camp have recently been engaging in an apparent electoral contest with each other.

This visible political posture between BNP and Jamaat has triggered widespread debate and discussion over whether this is a genuine electoral rivalry or merely a strategic political understanding aimed at government formation.

Before and after Bangladesh’s independence, Jamaat-e-Islami managed to preserve its organisational structure through changing political contexts. Due to their opposing roles during the 1971 Liberation War, Awami League and Jamaat have historically stood on completely opposite political and ideological positions in the eyes of the nation and its people.

The formation of BNP took place against the backdrop of a political vacuum created by the absence of Awami League, particularly within the space of centrist politics. After BNP’s establishment, Ziaur Rahman lifted the post-independence ban on religion-based political parties, a ban largely imposed because of Jamaat’s anti-liberation role in 1971. This decision reopened the space for religion-based politics in Bangladesh.

Many intellectuals of that........

© News18