The Bangladesh Nationalist Party has intensified scrutiny of potential nominees through field-level surveys and internal consultations, with discussions under way in constituencies where multiple aspirants are vying for the party ticket ahead of the February 2026 national election.
The BNP has advanced its preparations by holding a standing committee meeting on candidate selection, chaired by acting chairman Tarique Rahman, at the party chairperson鈥檚 office in Gulshan Tuesday night.
According to the committee members, the party acting chairman instructed them to prepare a list of single nominees for each constituency and to ensure that all aspirants commit to working collectively behind the chosen candidate through direct consultation.
One of the leaders said that the selection method involved several layers of consultation, with divisional organising teams and central leadership gathering opinions.
He explained that direct discussions were being held with contenders in constituencies with multiple aspirants, and field-level surveys were continuing to assess public sentiment, grassroots views, and even the role of aspirants during political struggles over the past 15 years.
The standing committee member said that coordination at the central level had been entrusted to a small team comprising Nazrul Islam Khan, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury and AZM Zahid Hossain as the party aimed to complete the exercise before the Election Commission鈥檚 announcement of the official schedule.
The team started its work on September 15.
The meeting also discussed how to handle dissent from unsuccessful aspirants.
During the meeting, the leaders acknowledged that some discontent was inevitable but stressed that it would be the party鈥檚 collective responsibility to manage any backlash.
They said that the nominees would be expected to persuade their rivals to support them.
Another standing committee member said that the meeting also discussed seat-sharing with like-minded parties, though no final decision was made.
He said that the standing committee emphasised the need to maintain the unity built during the joint political movements while being cautious about accepting allied parties鈥� lists.
He said that one option under consideration was offering prominent figures from allied groups positions in a potential future 鈥榰pper house鈥� of parliament.
