On 12 February, Bangladesh will vote in one of the most consequential elections in its history. This is not a routine contest between parties. It is an epochal decision about the future of our nation.
We stand at a crossroads. One path leads backward—to the restoration of corruption and authoritarianism, of family rule and oligarchic dominance, to an economy hollowed out by looting and institutions stripped of public trust. The other path opens toward a new era—one that preserves the spirit of July and carries forward the essential changes demanded by our people.
At stake is the fate of the July Revolution itself. Will we bury July and once again surrender to the old order? Or will we finally end the systematic abuse of power by corrupt politicians, businesses, and bureaucrats? Can our economy survive yet another cycle of bank looting, institutional destruction, and outrageously inflated power and infrastructure contracts? Are our July warriors to be condemned to an oligarchic economy that crushes enterprise and creates no jobs? Can Bangladesh engage with India and the wider world without sacrificing its dignity?
That is the choice before us.
As election day approaches, most of the parties are trying to appear good and saying the right things. Their rhetoric increasingly sounds alike. This is precisely why citizens must look beyond slogans. We must ask harder questions: who stands behind these parties? Who funds them? Where does their power come from? Who are their leaders and candidates—and what is their record? Which coalition is truly capable of continuing the difficult work of reform and recovery? And, crucially, which one is actually willing and able to implement those reforms?
The BNP’s record
The BNP is an old and deeply corrupt party, cut from the same cloth as the Awami League. In the 1990s, these two parties competed through corruption, patronage, and violence. It was the BNP’s attempt to manipulate the caretaker system in 2006 that triggered the crisis leading to military intervention—and ultimately to fifteen years of Awami League authoritarianism.
This old leopard has shown no sign of changing its spots, however polished its rhetoric may now appear. Since August 2024, BNP-style extortion politics have continued openly. Unsurprisingly, the party has been rejected in university elections across the country. Secular students, including many women, voted for Jamaat-supported candidates not out of ideology, but out of a desire to end corruption and predatory power politics.
The BNP has nominated large numbers of compromised individuals, including at least fifty major loan defaulters. After fifteen years out of power, it is suddenly flush with money—as old oligarchs and former Awami League financiers shift their support to another party they believe they can once again “do business” with. The BNP openly courts the Awami League and India and signals its willingness to rehabilitate the Awami League politically. This would complete a full return to the old system: corrupt competition between two parties that understand this game all too well. They may speak of reform, but they cannot deliver it—because they are funded by, and represent, the very networks that must be dismantled.
Why are we so certain that the BNP’s promises are empty? Because the evidence is now unmistakable. Over the past seventeen months, it has become clear that seventeen years out of power—and the suffering that came with it—have not changed their behaviour. The sacrifices of our youth and the promise of a new era have failed to curb their greed. Instead, they appear ready to form unholy alliances with the same Awami League oligarchs who once oppressed them, simply to regain power at any cost. A party willing to compromise this far will compromise on anything, to enrich itself and entrench its rule.
The case for the NCP-Jamaat coalition
Only parties that are not beholden to corrupt businessmen and compromised bureaucrats can carry out the changes Bangladesh urgently needs. This is why the NCP-Jamaat coalition stands apart.
Compared to the alternatives, its commitments—to fighting corruption, recovering stolen assets, and renegotiating inflated contracts—are credible. Its leaders and candidates are not steeped in the toxic practices of the past. Our call for constitutional reform carries weight precisely because it does not exist to preserve family rule. Even within the administration, our sympathisers are widely recognised as being less corrupt.
Yes, this coalition lacks experience in running corrupt governments—and that is its greatest strength. We are more open to expertise, reform, and transparency because we have no loan defaulters, no crony contractors, and no thieves to protect.
The India question
And then there is the elephant in the room: India. Not only did it support the Awami League’s authoritarian rule, it continues to harbour their criminal leaders.
Both the BNP and the NCP-Jamaat coalition are committed to dialogue and establishing good relations with India. But there is a critical difference. The BNP speaks of “protecting national interests”—but whose interests, and at what cost? The Awami League long claimed that it could best protect our national interests, yet under its rule our relationship deteriorated to an unprecedented level. Why did that happen?
As the slain student leader Osman Hadi so powerfully said, under the Awami League we lost our dignity.
India persecutes its own Muslim citizens and seeks to push millions across the border by branding them “Bangladeshis.” It has encircled Bangladesh with barbed wire, where people are routinely shot. And yet it demanded transit rights—through the very territory whose people it so openly dislikes. No self-respecting nation can concede to this. Is there any price at which a nation’s dignity can be sold? And what do we call a government willing to negotiate under such conditions?
The NCP-Jamaat coalition and the July warriors are clear: dignity comes before we talk about interests. Dialogue can only follow when India treats Bangladesh and Indian Muslims with respect. Bangladesh must finally stand upright, diversify its alliances, and protect itself through balanced diplomacy. A wounded and humiliated nation cannot heal.
On Islam, women, and minorities
And what of the fears that the NCP-Jamaat alliance will lead to an Islamic state, or harm women and minority rights? These concerns are serious and must be addressed—not dismissed.
Bangladesh is a deeply religious society, but Islam here is not monolithic. Fifteen years of repressing Muslim identity and politics have not erased them; they have only intensified resentment. Another cycle of repression would be disastrous for national reconciliation. Jamaat represents the most modernist and institutionally disciplined strand of Muslim politics in Bangladesh. This election is not about imposing religious law—it is about forming a coalition capable of advancing the reform aspirations of July. There exist more regressive forces and fringe Islamist elements that are not part of the NCP-Jamaat alliance. Ironically, it was the Awami League that repeatedly courted those groups while excluding Jamaat, sidelining the only Islamic party capable of modernising reform. The BNP now risks repeating the same error.
Is there a danger that regressive forces could be emboldened by a Jamaat-NCP victory? Yes—unless society remains vigilant, as it must. Regressive practices have occurred under both the Awami League and the BNP. Jamaat, however, is the most disciplined and organised party in the country. With the vigilance of NCP youth and the broader July movement, a disciplined government will not tolerate assaults on women’s rights or minority rights from any quarter. Ending everyday corruption and extortion, restoring public safety, and reclaiming dignity are the most immediate foundations for real freedom—for women and men, minorities and majorities alike—to live and work together peacefully.
The choice is clear
So this is our choice.
On one side stands a corrupt, family-run, clientelist party—entangled with oligarchs and dubious fringe forces. On the other stands an electoral coalition bringing together a democratic religious party with a record of clean governance, a disciplined national organisation, a student movement born from July, and allies united by the demand for change.
Neither option is perfect. But if we believe that a return to the old system would be catastrophic—if we believe it would accelerate economic collapse, institutional decay, and social breakdown—then the choice is clear.
It is, in this context, NCP faced a difficult choice: contest alone or form a coalition. The next Parliament will determine the fate of the July Charter, and remaining outside it would leave the July Warriors vulnerable. With less than a year to organise, and despite public support, we lacked a nationwide organisational footprint. Contesting alone therefore carried a high risk. Parliamentary presence is essential to protect our people, strengthen the party, and build an inclusive organisation.
We explored an electoral coalition with BNP but found no genuine commitment to reform or anti-corruption. Jamaat, by contrast, showed clear commitment to justice, anti-corruption, and resetting Bangladesh’s foreign relations. This coalition is rooted in justice, reform, anti-corruption, and resistance to hegemony—conditions not possible with BNP.
For the sake of July, for dignity, for reform, and for the future of Bangladesh, the NCP-Jamaat coalition must win.