Another NCP female leader quits

Alleging that National Citizen Party (NCP) has completely abandoned its centrist political stance and moved into right-wing politics by aligning with Jamaat-e-Islami and like-minded parties, another senior female leader resigned from the party today (3 January).

Syeda Nilima Dola, a central member of the NCP, submitted her resignation letter to party Convener Nahid Islam, saying that the party no longer holds any scope for pursuing a new path of centrist politics.

In her resignation letter, Dola said she had remained with the NCP after the July uprising with the expectation that the party would work towards state reform, but "it has ultimately turned into a patron of right-wing forces."

Bringing allegations of deception against the party, she said, "The election-oriented alliance between NCP and Jamaat is not a strategic one. If it were strategic, so many leaders and activists would not have resigned. This alliance was formed by misleading grassroots leaders and workers. Under the pretext of nominations, the NCP has committed blatant betrayal."

Referring to what she described as another 'game plan', Dola said those who are resigning are being framed as leftists, which, according to her, makes it easier for the NCP to 'sell the party' to Jamaat.

Questioning the party's ideological position, she wrote to Nahid Islam, "If those who are leaving are leftists, does that make you right-wing? Were you not supposed to be a centrist party?"

Dola also said the public trust and confidence that people once had in the NCP have been 'shattered', adding that the party has failed to live up to public expectations. She warned that the NCP would face the people's response in the difficult days ahead.

Calling the alliance with Jamaat incompatible with the party's origins, Dola said, "The NCP emerged standing on the blood of the July martyrs. The martyrs did not sacrifice their lives to play politics by foregrounding religious ideology. There was no religious revolution or uprising in Bangladesh in July 2024."

She also alleged that the NCP is moving towards establishing the narrative of the former ruling Awami League, saying, "By wrapping the uprising in a religious cloak, you are paving the way for the Awami narrative. For this, 'lal salam' to you."

With Dola's resignation, the number of leaders and activists who have quit the NCP has crossed ten. Since the resignation of senior joint member secretary Tasnim Jara over the party's alliance with Jamaat, a series of central leaders have stepped down.

The NCP, however, has said it is not concerned about individuals leaving or joining the party, describing the development as a normal political process.