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Bangla Press Desk:   The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) gained little from its seat-sharing arrangement in the 13th national parliamentary election, as nine of the 14 constituencies it left for allies were won by rivals, mainly the Jamaat-e-Islami-led 11-party alliance.

Under the arrangement, the BNP refrained from fielding candidates in those seats and instructed its grassroots leaders and activists to campaign for its allies. However, party leaders admitted that the strategy failed to deliver the expected results.

Of the 14 seats allocated to partners, allies managed to win only five, while nine were lost. The Jamaat-led alliance emerged as the biggest beneficiary, winning four of the nine lost seats. One seat each went to the National Citizen Party (NCP) and Khelafat Majlis, both partners in the Jamaat-led alliance. The remaining three seats were won by BNP rebel candidates.

BNP leaders termed the outcome disappointing, saying rivals consolidated their position in constituencies where the party had stepped aside. The results also raised questions within the party over the effectiveness of its seat-sharing strategy and grassroots coordination.

One of the most notable defeats occurred in Dhaka-12, where BNP ally Saiful Haque of the Biplobi Workers Party secured 30,963 votes but lost to Jamaat candidate Saiful Alam Milon, who won with 53,773 votes. BNP rebel Saiful Alam Nirob received 29,869 votes in the constituency.

BNP leaders said the seat might not have been lost had the allied and rebel candidates united behind a single contender.

BNP allocated four seats – the highest number given to any ally – to Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, but none of its candidates won. In those constituencies, one seat went to Khelafat Majlis, one to a BNP rebel, one to Jamaat-e-Islami and one to the NCP.

In Brahmanbaria-2, BNP rebel Rumeen Farhana won with 118,547 votes, defeating Jamiat candidate Junayed Al Habib by a margin of 38,113 votes. In Sylhet-5, Jamiat candidate Ubaydullah Faruk lost to Khelafat Majlis candidate Abul Hasan by 9,581 votes. In Nilphamari-1, Jamiat’s Monzurul Islam Afendi was defeated by a Jamaat candidate by 31,054 votes, while in Narayanganj-4, Jamiat candidate Monir Hossain lost to an NCP candidate by 25,552 votes.

Meanwhile, following amendments to the Representation of the People Order, 1972, several alliance leaders dissolved or left their own parties to contest under the BNP symbol. However, most of them also failed to secure victory.

In Jhenaidah-4, Rashed Khan of Gono Odhikar Parishad, who contested with the BNP symbol, finished third with 56,224 votes, while Jamaat’s Abu Talib won by a margin of 102,875 votes. BNP rebel Saiful Islam Firoz came second.

In Kishoreganj-5, Ehsanul Huda dissolved his Bangladesh Jatiya Party to contest on a BNP ticket but lost to BNP rebel Sheikh Mujibur Rahman by 13,154 votes. In Cumilla-7, former four-time MP Redwan Ahmed, who left the Liberal Democratic Party to join BNP, lost to BNP rebel Atikul Alam by 43,181 votes.

In Narail-2, Farhad, chairman of the National People’s Party, joined BNP after leaving his party but was defeated by Jamaat candidate Ataur Rahman by a margin of 72,679 votes.

.Source: daily Sun

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