AL Rebels in Local Body Polls: They will stop at nothing

Repeated show-cause notices, warnings of punitive actions and even expulsions from the organisation have failed to deter Awami League leaders from participating in the local government polls without the party tickets.

Around 900 such leaders, often called "rebel candidates", are vying against the AL nominees in the upcoming union parishad polls, giving the party a headache.

Worried over the practice, the AL high-ups amended the party's constitution in 2016, introducing provisions to expel such individuals without prior notice and making the local committee recommend the names of the potential nominees.

But AL leaders, disgruntled with the party for not nominating them, keep participating in the polls as independents.

The absence of other major political parties in the polls, internal feud, lack of a chain of command and nepotism in the nomination of candidates at the grassroots are among the reasons why there are so many rebel contestants, top AL leaders told The Daily Star.

The second phase of the UP elections will be held in 848 union parishads on November 11. More than one such rebel candidate is participating in many of the UPs as around 900 rebel AL candidates are contesting in these UPs. The rebels have submitted their nomination papers to the Election Commission as independents.

Top AL leaders hope the number of rebels will come down by tomorrow. October 17 was the last day for submission of nomination papers and tomorrow is the last day for withdrawal of candidacy. The EC will assign the electoral symbol on October 27.

In September, AL General Secretary Obaidul Quader warned that the party would handle the issue of rebels with an iron hand, saying that the rebels would neither get any post in the party nor get nominated.

The warning clearly did not work.

AL presidium member Abdur Razzak told The Daily Star that there were so many rebel candidates because the BNP is not taking part in the election.

"If the BNP were an opponent, the Awami League leaders would be more united," he said.

There are rivalries among the grassroots leaders because the party has been in power for a long time, he added.

In the coming polls, the AL has not nominated any individual who previously participated in any election as a rebel, he said.

AL Joint General Secretary Bahauddin Nasim is also of the view that the absence of opposition parties in the elections was the main reason behind the tendency.

He, however, hoped that the central leaders working on the issue would soon sort things out.

The AL leadership is also worried because many rebel independents defeated the AL nominees in earlier UP polls.

On September 20, elections were held in 160 union parishads. It was part of the first phase of UP elections that were postponed due to the pandemic. The election was marred by violence with two dying in Cox's Bazar.

Most of the AL nominees faced challenges from the dissidents in that election. The situation was similar in the first phase of the polls in 204 UPs on June 21.

According to our correspondents, the coming elections will be held in 11 UPs in Jhikargacha Upazila of Jashore. Multiple local AL leaders have filed nomination papers as independents in eight of those unions.

Among them, local AL leader AKM Gias Uddin, brother of Jashore-2 MP Nasir Uddin, is running for chairman in Magura UP as an independent. He is one of the 19 such rebels in the 11 UPs in Chaugacha.

Elections are going to be held in 17 UPs in Mirpur and Bheramara upazilas of Kushtia. There are 13 rebel candidates in the two upazilas.

Sharmin Akhter was nominated by the AL to run for chairman in Poradaha UP of Mirpur upazila. But Anowaruzzaman Biswas Mojnu, a local AL leader, filed nomination papers as an independent.

Contacted, he said the individual nominated had no acceptance at the grassroots level and the activists have "forced" him to run for chairman. Mojnu, however, said he might withdraw his nomination paper.

Forty-six candidates have filed nominations for the post of chairman in 11 UPs of Singair in Manikganj. Thirteen AL leaders are contesting in eight of the UPs as independent, sources said.

Shahadat Hossain is AL nominee in Joymontop UP. Two other local AL leaders have submitted their nomination papers there.

One of them, Borhan Uddin Fakir, said nomination was given there in exchange for money.

"I submitted my nomination paper because the grassroot leaders and activists forced me to," he said.

The AL leader also alleged that he was being intimidated by a section of local leaders and asked to withdraw his nomination paper.

In Sherpur Sadar, seven AL rebels are running in six UPs.

Ismail Hossain, elder brother of Whip of the Jatiya Sangsad Atiur Rahman Atiq, filed nomination papers from Kamaria Union as an independent.

According to sources, at least 24 AL rebels are contesting in 16 UPs in Tanore and Godagari upazilas of Rajshahi.

Khadekunnabi Babu Chowdhury, cousin of AL MP Omar Faruk Chowdhury of Rajshahi-1, is contesting in Kolma UP in Tanore as an independent.

There are 33 rebel candidates in 10 UPs of Pabna's Sujanagar upazila. Ahmed Kabir, younger brother of AL MP Ahmed Firoz Kabir of Pabna-2, is among the rebel candidates in Satbaria UP.