Staff Reporter :
The BNP has finally announced its final list of candidates. After intense calculations, scrutiny, and verification for all 300 constituencies, the party has granted nominations to the most eligible contenders. Due to their geographical importance, Rajbari-1 and Rajbari-2 hold significant political weight for the BNP.
On this day, Ali Nawaz Mahmud Khaiyam received the nomination for Rajbari-1. However, the candidate’s name for Rajbari-2-comprising Pangsha, Baliakandi, and Kalukhali-has been kept pending. The BNP is facing a major challenge regarding this constituency.
Local BNP leaders and activists say that if the right candidate is not nominated here, the party could face an existential crisis. The reason is that this seat was previously held by the now-fugitive Awami League’s former Railway Minister, Md. Zillul Hakim. Therefore, to secure victory, BNP must nominate the candidate with the strongest popular base.
In the upcoming election, former MP Nasirul Haque Sabu and former district BNP general secretary Harun-or-Rashid Harun are the main figures in discussion for Rajbari-2. However, Nasirul Haque Sabu is reportedly in poor health and has been inactive in the anti-fascist movement against Sheikh Hasina’s authoritarian regime due to his illness. For this reason, most of the party’s grassroots members prefer the younger leader, Harun-or-Rashid.
Local BNP leaders argue that to protect the party from internal feuds, extortion, and violence, Harun is essential. Otherwise, the constituency could descend into chaos.
Historically, BNP candidates have held strong influence in this seat. During the Awami League’s rule, BNP leaders and activists were subdued through cases and repression. Although that situation has somewhat improved, fears remain that they could again be cornered. Some fear that the seat might be given to Mominul Amin, the Secretary General of the BNP’s alliance partner, the National Democratic Movement (NDM). However, local leaders strongly oppose this idea. They say that if the BNP does not field its own candidate in Rajbari-2, the party could lose credibility and alienate its dedicated, long-serving leaders. “We have never even heard of this alliance candidate’s name, nor seen his face,” they added.
Grassroots leaders also allege that during the previous government, former Railway Minister Zillul Hakim and his son Mitul Hakim built a large militant and extortionist network, which still possesses significant amounts of money and weapons. If the BNP fails to field a strong candidate, the election could be marred by unrest, intimidation, and even voter suppression. Therefore, they insist that Harun-or-Rashid must be nominated as the BNP candidate to ensure peace and stability for the people of all three upazilas.
