BNP MP seeks merger with Awami League as Hasina vows Dhaka return

Days after former Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina made her first public address in Delhi and vowed to return to the nation, a Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) lawmaker has called for his party's merger with the now banned Awami League (headed by Hasina).BNP MP from Sunamganj-2, Nasir Uddin Chowdhury, said that Hasina's Awami League is an "ally" of the ruling party, reported Dhaka-based news outlet, Prohtom Alo.That being said, others in the BNP, and the Bangladesh government, have expressed different opinions, which are divergent and are contrary to the views of Chowdhury.On Wednesday, August 5, Sheikh Hasina attended a press conference organised in Delhi by the Foreign Correspondent's Club of South Asia. The event marked the former PM's first public address in two years, after the student protests in July and August 2024 ousted the Hasina's Awami League government and forced the PM to seek safe refuge in India. During the press conference, Hasina said she intended to return to Bangladesh in December this year, coinciding with the anniversary of the 1971 Liberation War — the prolonged struggle by Bangladeshi nationalists for independence, which ended after Indian military intervention led to the defeat of Pakistani forces in the territory.The Tarique Rahman-led BNP government, which came to power after elections in February this year, has long demanded Hasina’s extradition from India. Dhaka has also previously urged New Delhi to refrain from providing "fugitive Hasina, a platform, who its foreign office said "could use Indian territory to make political statements or engage in activities aimed at creating instability within Bangladesh". Ahead of the event, Information and Broadcasting Adviser to Bangladesh PM Tarique Rahman, Zahed Ur Rahman, warned local media outlets against publishing or broadcasting Hasina's remarks.BNP MP CALLS AWAMI LEAGUE ALLY, BATS FOR MERGERDays after Hasina's presser, BNP Sunamganj-2 MP, Nasir Uddin Chowdhury at a rally on Thursday called the Awami League an ally and said the two parties could merge in the future.According to the Prothom Alo report, Chowdhury, who first won on a BNP ticket in 1996, made the remarks while addressing a party rally at Thana Point in Derai municipality."The Awami League is not our enemy, they are our allies. We fought the Liberation War together with them. Awami League will merge with BNP soon," he was quoted as saying.Chowdhury was speaking at a rally organised by the Derai upazila and municipal units of BNP titled "17 years of relentless struggle for democracy and the bloody July uprising."Despite the remarks, Chowdhury appears to be a lone voice.BANGLADESH PM ADVISOR CALLS HASINA PRESSER INSULT TO JULY MARTYRSOn Thursday, August 6, BNP Senior Joint Secretary General and PM Rahman's Political Adviser Ruhul Kabir Rizvi criticised Sheikh Hasina's presser, accusing Indian policymakers of deliberately arranging it on the anniversary of the July Uprising to "insult the martyrs of the movement."According to a report by the Dhaka-based news outlet, The Daily Star, Rizvi made the remarks after placing wreaths at the graves of BNP founder Ziaur Rahman and former prime minister Khaleda Zia. It quoted Rizvi as saying, "Sheikh Hasina was given the chance to speak in a highly planned and deliberate way. This was completely planned by Indian policymakers," adding that she was allowed to speak "to insult the martyrs of the great revolution."Rizvi also said allowing Hasina to make political statements from India undermined Bangladesh’s sovereignty.Similar statements were also made by Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry.On Wednesday, following Hasina's presser, the ministry released a statement accusing New Delhi of allowing its soil to be used to undermine Bangladesh's sovereignty. Calling the event an "affront to the sovereignty of Bangladesh", it said India's decision to permit Hasina's live media interaction had hurt bilateral ties and insulted the martyrs of the 2024 July Revolution.WE WILL SEE YOU ON THE STREETS, SAYS BANGLADESH ACTING PRESIDENTAlso on Wednesday, the Dhaka-based news outlet, Desh Rupantor, reported Acting President Hafiz Uddin Ahmed Bir Bikram as reacting to Sheikh Hasina’s plan to return to Bangladesh in December. "They say they will return to the country in December. We are waiting. Come back to the country, and Inshallah, we will meet on the streets," the outlet quoted Ahmed as saying.Speaking at a government event in Dhaka, Ahmed criticised the banned Awami League and accused it of showing no remorse over allegations of injustice, enforced disappearances, killings, torture and money laundering. "I fought in the Liberation War at the age of 27. Now, at 82, if Bangladesh needs me, I will fight again for the country," he said.Hafiz Uddin Ahmed Bir Bikram was appointed Acting President of Bangladesh on July 24, after President Mohammed Shahabuddin resigned, citing health issues and his inability to complete his term in office. Shahabuddin, who was appointed president in 2023 (during Awami League rule), had remained one of the last of Sheikh Hasina's allies still holding office after the 2024 unrest.- EndsPublished By: Shounak SanyalPublished On: Aug 7, 2026 18:07 IST