Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Draws NCP and LDP Into an Islamist Alliance |
On December 28, 2025, Bangladesh’s political landscape shifted dramatically when the Ameer of the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Dr. Shafiqur Rahman announced that the National Citizen Party (NCP) and the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) had formally joined Jamaat’s Islamist-led electoral alliance.
“When Bangladesh has reached a difficult turning point in national life, eight parties have been working together with the commitment to build a corruption-free Bangladesh… Now two more parties have joined us,” Rahman said. The press conference at Dhaka’s Jatiya Press Club marked the expansion of Jamaat’s coalition to 10 parties, including Islami Andolan Bangladesh and several other Islamist forces.
For Jamaat, long marginalized in Bangladesh’s politics, this alliance represents more than tactical seat-sharing. It is a calculated attempt to overcome decades of electoral stagnation, historical stigma, and ideological fragmentation.
Since Bangladesh’s independence, Jamaat has never secured more than 20 seats in the 300-member Jatiya Sangsad. Its anti-liberation war stance in 1971, including opposition to independence and alleged collaboration with Pakistani forces, has haunted the party for decades. This legacy, combined with the fragmentation of Islamist forces, has kept Jamaat on the margins of mainstream politics. Even when allied with larger opposition parties, Jamaat’s electoral performance remained modest. Its deregistration in 2013, during Awami League rule, further deepened its isolation.
“This alliance is committed to building a corruption-free, exploitation-free, and humane Bangladesh,” ........