11-party presser on seat sharing suspended amid deadlock with Islami Andolan, Khelafat Majlis
Islami Andolan has been demanding the opportunity to contest at least 70 seats independently, while Jamaat-e-Islami is reportedly unwilling to concede more than 45 seats to the party.
The Jamaat-e-Islami-led 11-party electoral alliance has suspended its press conference, where it was supposed to make a final announcement on seat-sharing, scheduled for this afternoon (14 January) citing "unavoidable reasons."
AHM Hamidur Rahman Azad, coordinator of the alliance and assistant secretary general of Jamaat, made the announcement in a message to the media today.
The development comes amid uncertainty over whether the Islami Andolan Bangladesh (IAB) and Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis will remain in the alliance amid growing tensions with key ally Jamaat, primarily over seat-sharing arrangements.
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The ambiguity has emerged as negotiations over the final allocation of constituencies within the alliance remain unresolved.
Earlier, speaking to The Business Standard, IAB Presidium Member Professor Ashraf Ali Akon said the party has yet to reach a final decision on whether it will stay in the alliance.
"Our central shura members and candidates held a meeting until 2am today to decide whether Islami Andolan will remain in the 11-party alliance," he said.
"Now, a meeting of our highest policy-making body, the Majlis-e-Amela, is set to begin. We will review all aspects and take a final decision there," he added.
When asked whether Islami Andolan will be present at the press conference, when it was still on the cards, scheduled to announce the final seat-sharing arrangement of the alliance, he did not provide a clear answer.
Jamaat leader Hamidur had earlier said in a press release that the alliance would make a final announcement on seat-sharing at a press conference at 4:30pm today at the Diploma Engineers Institute in the capital.
According to party sources, the Islami Andolan has been demanding the opportunity to contest at least 70 seats independently, while the Jamaat-e-Islami is reportedly unwilling to concede more than 45 seats to the party. This disagreement has cast uncertainty over the future of the alliance.
Meanwhile, the Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis, led by Mamunul Haque, also held a party meeting last evening (13 January) but failed to reach a final decision on whether to remain in the alliance.
The party has repeatedly stated that unless it is allocated at least 25 seats, it will campaign independently for its candidates under the rickshaw symbol, potentially undermining the Islamic parties' proposed "single box" electoral strategy.
According to Election Commission data, a total of 849 nomination papers were submitted by the 11-party alliance, nearly three times the 300-seat capacity of parliament. The Jamaat-e-Islami submitted 276 nominations, Islami Andolan Bangladesh 268, Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis 94, Khelafat Majlis 68, AB Party 53, National Citizen Party 44, Liberal Democratic Party 24, Bangladesh Khelafat Andolon 11, Nizam-e-Islam Party six, Jatiya Ganatantrik Party three, and Bangladesh Development Party two.
