Three political parties — the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, and the National Citizen Party — expressed differing views on whether a ban should be imposed on the Jatiya Party, a former ally of the deposed Awami League-led government.
The issue came up during separate meetings between chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus and leaders of the three parties at the state guest house Jamuna on Sunday.
The Jamaat said that, given the JP’s close alliance with the AL, restrictions could be imposed on its political activities while the NCP went further, urging the government to take immediate and decisive action against the Jatiya Party, including suspending its organisational operations.
The BNP, however, took a different stance, saying it did not support banning any political party. The party argued that such a move would not help resolve the country’s ongoing political crisis, according to the meeting sources.
The demand for imposing a ban on the JP came to the forefront after Gano Odhikar Parishad President Nurul Haque Nur and other party leaders were injured in a clash with JP activists in front of the party’s central office at Bijoynagar in Dhaka.
During the incident, law enforcers charged batons, leaving Nur with serious head and nose injuries on Friday evening.
Following the incident, chief adviser Professor Yunus invited the three political parties to discuss the ongoing political situation and the next elections scheduled for first half of February 2026.
After the meeting, BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir told reporters that the attack on Nur had been discussed and described as a deeply serious and very alarming issue, with concerns raised that it might arguably delay the election.
He said that they discussed that the polls would go ahead on schedule and as announced. He noted that the chief adviser had agreed with this position and given the same assurance.
Fakhrul described the talks with Yunus as fruitful and successful, saying that the entire nation was reassured by the outcome and was also confident that the election would be held in February.
According to meeting sources, the chief adviser urged all parties to minimise their differences over the reform proposals in order to ensure that the national elections could be held on time and in a festive spirit.
Jamaat nayeb-e-amir Syed Abdullah Mohammed Taher told reporters that they gave consent to the interim government that a ban like that on AL activities could be imposed on the activities of the Jatiya Party in light of recent political unrest and allegations of violence.
‘If a ban can be imposed on the Awami League activities, then the same decision can be taken for Jatiya Party,’ he said.
Jamaat leader also alleged that a major political party was creating obstacles to giving the agreed reform proposal a legal basis.
He said that they urged the CA to ensure a level-playing field for all parties in the upcoming elections.
The National Citizen Party has called on the chief adviser to take immediate and decisive action against the Jatiya Party for its involvement in legitimising past controversial elections.
Following a meeting with chief adviser, NCP senior joint convener Ariful Islam Adeeb said that the continued operation of JP poses a significant threat to the democratic process.
The NCP urged the chief adviser to suspend the Jatiya Party’s organisational activities and initiate steps to hold its leadership accountable, he said.
During the meeting, the party also strongly advocated for the upcoming national election to be held as a constituent assembly election aimed at adopting a new constitution.
Following the meetings with political party leaders, chief adviser’s press secretary Shafiqul Alam said that Muhammad Yunus had reaffirmed that the national elections would be held on schedule in early February, promising a free, fair, and festive voting environment.
Ahead of Durga Puja, the chief adviser called on all political parties to remain vigilant and cooperate to prevent any conspiracies around the festival period, he said.
