BNP loses so-called allies

After leaving the BNP-led alliance a month ago, National People's Party (NPP) chief Sheikh Shawkat Hossain Nilu yesterday announced the formation of a new political alliance.
The announcement came at a press conference held at the Institute of Diploma Engineers in the capital where Nilu also said the platform is ready to contest the next parliamentary election under the Sheikh Hasina government.
Nilu will be the chairman of the new coalition called "National Democratic Front" (NDF), while Alamgir Mazumder, secretary general of National Democratic Party, another component of the BNP-led alliance, will be the secretary general of it.
The alliance is composed of 10 political parties and eight of them are not registered with the Election Commission, meaning those political parties will not be able to participate in the election. Only two parties, Nilu-led NPP and Zubeida Quader Chowdhury-led Bangladesh Muslim League (BML), have registration with the EC.
On August 24, Nilu announced quitting the BNP-led 20-party alliance, saying the alliance chief Khaleda Zia was running the combine unilaterally and that she had taken the wrong decision of boycotting the January 5 elections.
Bringing the same allegations against Khaleda, Mazumder, on September 21, made it clear that he was going to quit the alliance.
The new political coalition was initiated mainly by Nilu, and Mazumder.
Earlier in the last few months, Bangladesh National Awami League (Nap-Bhashani), Bangladesh Islamic Party and Bangladesh Labour Party also announced to quit the BNP-led alliance.
However, rival factions of five political parties -- NPP, Bangladesh National Awami League            (Nap-Bhashani), Bangladesh Islamic Party, Bangladesh Labour Party and National Democratic   Party are remaining with the              BNP-led 20-party alliance, while          the other faction with the new alliance.
BNP later acknowledged the rival faction of NPP, NDP, Nap-Bhashani, Islamic Party and Labour party as the components in the BNP-led 20-party alliance.
The four other components in the coalition are: Jatiyatabadi Ganotantrik Dal, Bangladesh Insaf Party, Trinomool Nap-Bhashani and Bhashani Front.
BNP and some political analysts have been blaming the government for the splitting of components in the alliance. They said the government was doing this to weaken the coalition ahead of its preparations for waging anti-government              movement to press for a fresh election under a non-party administration.
BNP-led alliance and most other political parties had boycotted the January 5 national elections as it had taken place under the Sheikh Hasina administration.
Nilu and other leaders of the new coalition, who had earlier waged movement in favour of a non-party administration during elections, yesterday said they have no objection if the election was held           under the Sheikh Hasina administration.
Speaking at a meeting at the  Jatiya Press Club yesterday, BNP spokesperson Fakhrul Islam   Alamgir blamed the government for trying to split the BNP-led alliance. He also claimed that the ties between the BNP and its components in the alliance still remain solid.