Nearly 200 BNP leaders file as independents, defying party decision

After seven years off the ballot, hundreds of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leaders sought the party’s "sheaf of paddy" symbol – and many were refused. Now, in open defiance of the high command, just under 200 of them have filed nomination papers to run against BNP’s own candidates in the crucial February 12 general election.

An analysis of filings from 63 districts outside Dhaka shows that around 179 BNP leaders have submitted nominations in 118 constituencies as independents or rivals to the officially endorsed candidates.

They include several former MPs as well as district and Upazila-level office bearers. Many lodged their papers on Monday, the final day for submissions under the election schedule, despite repeated warnings from the BNP leadership.

The party is preparing to return to parliament for the first time since the 2018 general election, which it has long denounced as “the night vote”. It boycotted the 12th parliamentary poll two years ago.

With the Awami League now out of power after last year’s uprising, and barred from contesting this election, many BNP figures saw 2025 as a rare opening to reclaim ground.

When they were denied tickets, they took their fight to the ballot box instead – and in some cases to the streets.

BNP nominated its candidates in two phases nationwide. Many “rejected” aspirants still collected nomination papers in the hope the party would reconsider at the last minute.

Not all eventually filed – but nearly 200 did, gambling that BNP might yet revise its list or that they can run as outright rebels.

In all, 2,582 nomination papers have been submitted for the 300 seats.

WHY THE REBELLION HAS ERUPTED

Since the fall of the Awami League government on Aug 5 last year, BNP leaders in many constituencies have been campaigning informally, expecting nomination.

Once the party began announcing its choices in two phases nationwide, snubbed aspirants and their supporters erupted in protest.

There were demonstrations, road and rail blockades, torch processions and, in some areas, violent clashes, as they demanded that candidates be replaced.

Across the country, large numbers of leaders collected nomination forms in the hope that the list would be revised. Not all of them ultimately filed. Those who did still believe there is time for the party to reconsider and replace incumbents with them.

BNP’s Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi had earlier warned that the party would take a hard line against anyone who chose to stand against the official nominees or against allies under seat-sharing deals.

A senior BNP leader, speaking on Monday night, said the party would not tolerate open revolt but would wait for the scrutiny process to end before acting.

“The secretary general has already published the list of candidates as decided by the policy-making forum. They are the BNP nominees,” he said.

“If anyone has filed as a candidate outside that decision, the party will certainly take appropriate action. But we will wait until the scrutiny is complete.”

OLD FACES TURN REBEL

One of the most striking rebel bids has come in Brahmanbaria, where BNP leaders have filed as independents in all six constituencies, alongside the official BNP picks.

Among them is former MP Rumeen Farhana, who has entered the race in Brahmanbaria-2 (Sarail-Ashuganj and two unions of Bijoynagar) as an independent.

Now best known for her outspoken TV talk-show appearances under the Awami League government, she said of her decision to defy the BNP line: “This election belongs to the people. This election is about the individual, Rumeen Farhana. The people will answer everything through their votes.

"Such is Allah’s plan that I am having to stand against the sheaf of paddy.”

In Bagerhat, former MP MAH Selim has filed as an independent in three constituencies, defying the party line.

He says he is driven by loyalty to his constituents, not by rebellion.

“It is the love of the people that makes me want to contest even without the party nomination. I have pledged to run as an independent so I can spend the rest of my life working for the people.”

“I want to stand in the election even without the party nomination because of the affection of the people of the area,” he said. “I have pledged to spend the rest of my life doing something for the people, which is why I am standing as an independent.”

According to nomination data, Natore-1, Jhalakathi-1, Kishoreganj-1 and Brahmanbaria-6 each have four BNP figures now in the race as rebels. Several other seats have three rebel BNP leaders apiece.

In contrast, in districts such as Shariatpur, Moulvibazar, Cox’s Bazar, Lakshmipur, Bogura, Chapainawabganj, Lalmonirhat, Bhola, Pirojpur and Narsingdi, no BNP leader has filed against the official candidate.

Even in party strongholds such as Jashore, Khulna and Faridpur, only one seat in each district has a BNP rebel on the ballot.

In some constituencies that BNP had left for allies within its broader opposition alignment, party leaders have still filed as independents. One Bagerhat BNP leader has lodged papers in three separate seats.

WHY THIS ELECTION MATTERS SO MUCH FOR BNP

The 13th iteration of the parliamentary election, scheduled for February, will be the first since the July-August mass uprising of 2024 to be held without the Awami League. The party’s activities and those of its affiliated organisations have been banned and the Election Commission has suspended its registration.

Within the former 14-Party Alliance led by the Awami League, the Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JaSaD) and Workers Party have already announced they will boycott the polls.

But with BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party (NCP), the Jatiya Party and “most” other registered parties in the race, the Election Commission is pleased with what it calls a “peaceful” pre-election environment so far.

The deadline for filing nomination papers expired on Monday. Scrutiny will run from Dec 30 to Jan 4. Appeals against decisions on nominations can be filed from Jan 5 to 9, and the commission will dispose of them between Jan 10 and 18.

The final date for withdrawal is January 20. Party insiders say many rebel BNP figures may yet pull out by then. Only after that point will it be clear how many seats will see official BNP candidates facing their own party colleagues as rivals.

WHERE THE BNP REBELS ARE STRONGEST

Some BNP leaders have even filed in seats that were formally left to allies under seat-sharing arrangements.

In Bagerhat, one BNP leader has gone further still – submitting independent nomination papers in three separate constituencies.

In Natore-1, Jhalakathi-1, Kishoreganj-1 and Brahmanbaria-6, four BNP leaders in each seat have rebelled. Several other constituencies have three rebels each.

In contrast, there are no BNP rebels at all in districts such as Shariatpur, Moulvibazar, Cox’s Bazar, Lakshmipur, Bogura, Chapainawabganj, Lalmonirhat, Bhola, Pirojpur and Narsingdi, where leaders have fallen in line with party directives.

 In Jashore, only one of the six constituencies has a BNP rebel; the same is true in Khulna (one of six seats) and Faridpur (one of four seats).

WHAT THE REBELS THEMSELVES SAY

In Madaripur-1, independent hopeful Kamal Zaman Molla filed nomination after, he says, being first offered and then denied the party ticket.

“The party had nominated me. But later the nomination was withdrawn even though all the leaders and people of Shibchar remain with me,” he said.

“I am hopeful that if the administration ensures a level playing field, the people of Shibchar will nominate me.”

In Bagerhat-2, independent candidate and BNP leader MA Salam set out his grievances in stark terms.

“In 2007, during BNP’s bad days, I held the party’s reins,” he said. “I served as district president until 2016. Under Awami League rule I was subjected to repression, attacks and cases; I went to jail. I carried out the party’s programmes. I stood by persecuted leaders and activists.

 “For the last 16-17 years, everyone knows what I have done for this party. BNP’s own surveys showed my position at the top. Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman has always said those who stood by the party in bad times would be valued. What has the party given me?”

Salam added: “Leaders at all levels are frustrated today. Those who held the party together in bad times want me as their candidate. That is why, under pressure from them, I have entered the race. I am calling on the acting chairman to intervene and have the party reconsider its nominations.”

ALTERNATIVE CANDIDATES AND EXCEPTIONS

Beyond the rebels, BNP has also quietly reserved alternative options in several key seats.

For party Chairperson Khaleda , three constituencies have “backup candidates” in case of any legal or procedural complications.

In all five constituencies of Sunamganj, BNP has announced two candidates per seat, effectively keeping both in play for now. In Chattogram-6, Gias Uddin Quader Chowdhury and Khondaker Golam Akbar have both been declared party candidates and both are in the race.

In Netrokona-4 (Mohanganj, Madan and Khaliajuri), former state minister Lutfuzzaman Babar has filed, and so has his wife Tahmina Jaman Sraboni, as an independent.

With scrutiny, appeals and withdrawals still to come, the final shape of BNP’s presence on the ballot – and the full extent of its internal revolt – will only become clear in late January.