United News of Bangladesh

Police obstructed a Jamuna-bound procession brought out by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, Islami Andolon Bangladesh and seven other like-minded parties at Matsya Bhaban intersection on Thursday (6th November 2025) noon. The procession was organised to press home their several demands, including holding a national referendum in November. Later, police allowed a delegation from the rally to go to Jamuna. The delegation is supposed to submit a memorandum to Chief Adviser on the referendum and four other points.   Earlier, leaders and activists of the parities brought out a procession from the capital’s Paltan intersection to submit a memorandum to the Chief Adviser at his Jamuna residence. Jamaat now wants referendum any day before election: Azad The march, led by Jamaat Secretary General Mia Golam Porwar, began gathering at Paltan intersection around 10:30am, with leaders and activists from different thanas and wards of Dhaka South carrying banners and festoons. Activists from other Islamic parties also joined the assembly at Paltan. Their demands are holding the referendum within this month, stopping political harassment and arrests during the interim government period, ensuring equal opportunities for all political parties in the upcoming election, and guaranteeing freedom of religion and unhindered political activities. Following the rally, the procession started towards Jamuna around 12 noon to submit the memorandum to the Chief Adviser. Read more: Jamaat not to form any election alliance: Ameer Shafiqur Meanwhile, additional police were deployed in Paltan area to avert any untoward situation.

Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Dr Shafiqur Rahman on Wednesday said the upcoming 13th national parliamentary election is extremely important for the nation. He emphasized that it is through this election that the fate of the country will be determined. `Everyone has a crucial role to play to ensure that people can vote freely, fairly, and transparently,’ he made the remarks during a convention held at Mayurkunj, Sylhet-1, with grassroots-level responsible party members. Shafiqur Rahman stated that if the people vote to elect their party, they will deliver a just and corruption-free Bangladesh. There will be no discrimination among people, and they will rise above bribery, corruption, and nepotism to serve the citizens. He urged vigilance to prevent any return of fascist rule in the country and stressed that voters must elect honest, capable, and God-fearing individuals. Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer highlighted that voting is a sacred trust and must be exercised responsibly. Only by choosing the right candidates can the people change the nation’s destiny. He called on everyone to act above party lines and fulfill their duties with integrity. The convention also featured speeches by Jamaat’s Assistant Secretary General and Head of the Publicity & Media Department, Adv. Ehsanul Mahbub Jubayer; Central Shura member Maulana Habibur Rahman; Sylhet Metropolitan Jamaat Ameer Fakhrul Islam; and other leaders from Sylhet Metropolitan and district-level party organizations.

Reza Kibria, son of late former finance minister Shah AMS Kibria, has joined BNP and is likely to contest the upcoming national election from the Habiganj-1 constituency. “I have already joined BNP and filled up its primary membership form some days ago,” Reza told UNB on Wednesday. He said he wants to contest the election from his constituency, Habiganj-1, with the ‘Sheaf of Paddy’ symbol. “The party high command has assured me of nominating me for the seat,” Reza added. BNP sources said the party has kept the Habiganj-1 seat vacant, indicating that Reza Kibria may be nominated from there. Martyr Mugdha's brother steps into politics with BNP Reza Kibria also contested the 2018 parliamentary election from the same seat as a candidate of the Jatiya Oikyafront alliance, representing the Gonoforum party, using the BNP’s symbol. After the election, Reza joined the Gonodhikar Parishad led by former DUCSU VP Nurul Haque Nur and served as its convener. However, disagreements later emerged between the two leaders, prompting Reza to gradually step back from politics.  

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Wednesday strongly condemned the gun attack on the party’s candidate for Chattogram-8 Ershad Ullah, describing it as a clear attempt to create chaos and disrupt the upcoming 13th national election. In a statement, he also demanded the immediate arrest and exemplary punishment of those responsible for the attack. “Such incidents have been carried out with the aim of putting the current interim government in difficulty and obstructing the upcoming national election,” the BNP leader said. Fakhrul said there is no alternative but to deal with these miscreants firmly and decisively. He said Ershad Ullah sustained bullet injuries while campaigning this afternoon and was later admitted to Evercare Hospital in Chattogram. In his statement, Fakhrul expressed deep concern and strong protest over what he described as a “brutal and inhuman attack” by miscreants. “After the fall of the autocratic Awami regime through the student-led mass movement, some miscreants are once again attempting to create instability and anarchy in the country for their own gain,” he said. The BNP leader said the gun attack on Ershad Ullah and others is a clear manifestation of this malicious effort. He urged the people of all classes and professions, irrespective of political affiliation, to unite to protect democracy, citizens’ right to vote and public safety. “If we fail to remain united, these miscreants, lying in wait, will rise again and threaten the very existence of our country,” Fakhrul warned. He also prayed for the swift recovery of Ershad Ullah and others injured in the attack. A man was shot dead and two others, including Ershad Ullah, were injured in the attack by armed miscreants during campaigning at East Bayezid Hamzarbagh (Chalitati) in Chattogram on Wednesday. Officer-in-charge of Bayezid Police Station Arifur Rahman said the gunmen appeared around 6 pm during Ershad Ullah’s campaign and opened fire, killing Sarwar Babla on the spot and injuring two others.

Three political parties, which were denied registration by the Election Commission, staged demonstrations in front of Nirbachan Bhaban on Wednesday, demanding official recognition. The three parties—Aam Janatar Dal, Bangladesh Justice and Development Party, and Moulik Bangla—staged separate programmes, demanding registration as political parties ahead of the next general election. Aam Janatar Dal member secretary Tarique Rahman began a hunger strike unto death on Tuesday afternoon, shortly after EC Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed announced the decision to award registration to three other parties—National Citizen Party (NCP), Bangladesh Samajtantrik Dal (Marxist), and Bangladesh Aam Janagan Party. On Wednesday morning, Bangladesh Justice and Development Party and Moulik Bangla joined the demonstration with separate sit-in programmes at the EC gate. Till 8:30pm on Wednesday, leaders of the three parties were seen continuing their programmes.

Although the party has already announced candidates in 236 constituencies ahead of the 13th national parliamentary election, BNP’s real challenge now is to allocate seats among its alliance partners and like-minded parties, as they have already sought over 200 seats, said senior BNP leaders. Talking to UNB, several senior BNP leaders said sharing seats with alliance partners has now become an uphill task, as there is a big gap between expectations and reality. They said the party has started informal talks with like-minded groups to ensure effective negotiations and find ways to achieve a win-win outcome. The BNP leaders said the party has kept 64 parliamentary seats open for its long-time allies in the anti-fascist simultaneous movement, but it is willing to share at best 40 seats, including 10 for the National Citizen Party (NCP). A BNP Standing Committee member, wishing anonymity, said under the amended Representation of the People Order (RPO), coalition partners cannot contest using BNP’s election symbol, the ‘Sheaf of Paddy’, and must compete with their own symbols. “We now have to be very careful about seat sharing because of this. If the alliance partners cannot use our symbol, it could reduce their chances of victory, as many do not have strong local support or personal vote banks,” he said. In this situation, the BNP leader said, the party will try to persuade its alliance partners with other assurances, such as giving them ministerial positions or appointments to important institutions if their party comes to power. Another BNP Standing Committee member said the party has already announced plans to form a national government with representatives from different parties included in the cabinet. He said members of the party’s liaison committee, in consultation with Tarique Rahman, are closely monitoring the seat-sharing discussions to strike a balance between the party’s interests and the demands of its partners. “BNP is serious about giving proper space to its alliance partners. The decision to keep 63 seats open reflects our commitment to a united opposition,” the BNP leader said. He also said some changes may be made to the list of 236 announced candidates after discussions with the alliance partners. The BNP leader said they have recently asked key partners of the joint movement to indicate which constituencies they wish to contest. “So far, they have submitted lists for 222 constituencies,” he said. Party insiders said 14 leaders from like-minded parties have already been asked to start their election campaigns in respective areas. They include Mostafa Jamal Haider, Chairman of Jatiya Party, for Pirojpur-1 while Mahmudur Rahman Manna, President of Nagorik Oikko, for Bogura-2, Andalib Rahman Partha, Chairman of BJP, for Dhaka-17, Shahadat Hossain Selim, Chairman of Bangladesh LDP, for Laxmipur-1, Tania Rob, wife of JSD’s ASM Abdur Rab, for Laxmipur-4, Syed Ehsanul Huda, Chairman of Bangladesh Jatiya Party, for Kishoreganj-5, Bobi Hajjaj, Chairman of NDA, for Dhaka-13, Jonayed Saki, Chief Coordinator of Gonosonghoti Andolon, for Brahmanbaria-6, Professor Omar Farooq, son of Colonel (Retd) Oli Ahmed and Chairman of LDP, for Chattogram-14, Dr Redowan Ahmed, General Secretary of LDP, for Comilla-7, Dr Fariduzzaman Farhad, Coordinator of Nationalist Alliance and Chairman of NPP, for Narail-2, Nurul Haque Nur, President of Ganadhikar Parishad, for Patuakhali-, Rashed Khan, General Secretary of Ganadhikar Parishad, for Jhenaidah-2, and Dr Mostafizur Rahman Iran, Chairman of Labour Party, for Jhalakathi-1. BNP has not nominated any candidates in those seats. BNP suspends Kamal Jaman Mollah’s nomination in Madaripur-1 Party sources said the NCP sought 20 seats from BNP, though the party is considering giving them at best 10. NCP sources said they might not reach an understanding with BNP if their key leaders are not nominated, including Nahid Islam for Dhaka-11, Akhtar Hossain for Rangpur-4, Sarjis Alam for Panchagarh-1, Hasnat Abdullah for Comilla-4, Nasiruddin Patwari for Dhaka-18, Tasnim Jara for Dhaka-9, Sarwar Tushar for Narsingdi-2, Hannan Masud for Noakhali-6, and Adibul Islam Adib for Dhaka-14. BNP may also share seats with two Islamist parties — Jamiat Ulama-e Islam and Bangladesh Khelafat Majlish. Jamiat, led by Maulana Ubaydullah Faruq and Maulana Manzurul Islam Afendi, has sought around 12 seats, including Sylhet-5, Nilphamari-1, Brahmanbaria-2, Narayanganj-4, Kishoreganj-1 and Sunamganj-2. Martyr Mugdha's brother steps into politics with BNP BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said the alliance partners in the simultaneous movement have already been asked to submit their lists of potential candidates. “We will consider their proposals seriously and finalise seat sharing on the basis of field realities and viability,” he said. Fakhrul said although the party has already announced 236 potential candidates, some changes may be made later after discussions with allied parties. BNP Standing Committee member Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain said, “In our preliminary candidate list, 63 seats have been left vacant. These seats are not all reserved for coalition partners. Some areas have multiple strong candidates, and we have not yet finalised decisions there. These unresolved constituencies will be decided soon.” On the allocation of seats for allies, Dr Hossain said, “We will give maximum consideration to parties that have been part of our movement. Discussions are ongoing about who will contest from which constituency, and we will finalise the decisions very soon.”  

A delegation of women entrepreneurs on Wednesday urged the Election Commission (EC) to ensure that female candidates are nominated in at least 150 parliamentary seats and facilitate women voters in exercising their franchise in the national election. The delegation, led by President of Women Entrepreneurs Association of Bangladesh (WEAB) Nasreen Fatema Awal, placed the demand during a meeting with Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM Nasir Uddin at the latter’s Nirbachan Bhaban office in the afternoon. “We want the number of women in parliament to increase. At least 150 constituencies should be given to women. We are also requesting the government, through the Election Commission, to extend support to women candidates,” said Nasreen Fatema Awal while talking to reporters after the meeting. Army to deploy up to 100,000 troops during election: Army HQ Noting that women receive various forms of assistance in elections in different countries including the USA, the WEAB president said such support would help women contest comfortably and also encourage female voters to participate freely. “We want at least 50 percent — that is, 150 of the 300 seats — to be contested by women. We wanted to ensure that women can contest in the election,” she added. Nasreen Fatema said contesting polls is difficult for women as they don't have easy access to funds in the patriarchal environment. “If the government provides some financial support, many more women will be able to participate in the election,” she said. Settle applications of expat voters by Thursday: EC to field officials   Responding to a question, she said political parties should also increase the share of nominations for women. Right now, some parties give only 5 percent or less of their nominations to women, said the women entrepreneur. She asked the Election Commission to play a role so that the political parties would raise the share of nominations for women in the election.

National Citizens’ Party (NCP) on Wednesday clarified that it has not held any discussions or reached any decisions with any political party regarding seat-sharing or participation in any cabinet. In a statement, the NCP refuted a report published in a national daily claiming that the party ‘wants 20 seats from BNP and also a share in the cabinet’, describing it as false and misleading. “The news regarding seat-sharing with BNP and demands for cabinet positions is entirely baseless and deliberately fabricated,” the statement said. The party reiterated that it has never engaged in any alliance, seat-sharing negotiations, or power-sharing discussions with any political party and no such proposal has ever been approved by the party’s policy-making council. Clarifying its stance, the NCP said, “We once again make it clear that NCP has not demanded any seats or cabinet participation from any party. We remain committed to building a Bangladesh-oriented, responsible, and independent political force that earns the trust of the people.” NCP’s candidate list on Nov 15; likely to skip Khaleda’s constituencies The party emphasised that its vision for the country’s future politics is rooted in citizens’ rights, accountability, reforms, and democratic reconstruction. It is actively preparing its organisational structure and conducting candidate vetting nationwide in line with this mission. The NCP also called on the national daily to publicly apologise and publish a correction, noting that the so-called ‘sources’ cited in the report were purely speculative, misleading the public and harming the party’s reputation.  

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami now wants the proposed referendum on the July National Charter 2025 to be held any day before the next generation election, said its assistant secretary general AHM Hamidur Rahman Azad on Wednesday. “The latest stance of our eight parties is that the referendum should be held any day before the election,” he said while talking to reporters after a meeting with Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin. A two-member Jamaat delegation, led by Azad, met the CEC at the latter's Nirbachan Bhaban office at 3:30pm. Earlier, Jamaat had been demanding for arrangements of the referendum within November 2025. But BNP opposed the demand and asked the government and the Election Commission to hold the referendum simultaneously with the national election. Azad said the CEC told them if the government asks the Election Commission to hold the referendum on a separate day, they will do it. The Jamaat leader said they will place a formal memorandum before Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Thursday for arrangements of referendum on a separate day. Explaining the reasons behind the stance, Azad said holding both referendum and the national election on the same day could invite uncertainty over reform.  If the referendum and election is held on the same day and the polling is suspended at any polling station due to irregularities and violence, then the issue would be uncertain, he said.   He added that if both votes are held on the same day, people’s attention would naturally shift to their party candidates and symbols, making the referendum a “minor issue,” which may lead to low voter turnout in the referendum and may invite questions over referendum result. Azad said the eight-party alliance, which is waging a movement on a five-point demand, held three meetings recently and focused the promulgation of an order on the July Charter, which has already been late. Jamaat forms 2-member committee to hold talks with political parties In response to a question about seat-sharing talks with the National Citizen Party (NCP), Azad said they haven’t started specific discussions on seat allocations with any party including NCP. During the meeting, Jamaat drew the EC’s attention to some recent incidents to ensure the pre-electoral law and order situation otherwise the situation would go beyond control during the election. “If you can't control the pre-election environment, then you won't be able to control it during the election,” he told the EC. He further said Jamaat also demanded effective measures to ensure the voting rights of expatriates and proper implementation of the postal ballot system. Another delegation member is Jamaat publicity and media secretary Matiur Rahman Akanda.

Newly appointed Ambassador of the Netherlands to Bangladesh Boris van Bommel on Wednesday met BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and held discussions on bilateral matters and issues related to Bangladesh’s upcoming national election. The ambassador arrived at the BNP Chairperson’s Gulshan office at 3:00pm and the meeting lasted about an hour, said BNP Media Cell member Sayrul Kabir Khan. BNP leader terms surge in millionaires ‘alarming’ BNP Joint Secretary General Humayun Kabir, Organisational Secretary Shama Obaed and Tabith Awal, member of the BNP Chairperson’s Special Advisory Committee on Foreign Affairs, were also present. Sayrul said the meeting focused on issues of mutual interest between the two countries, as well as matters related to Bangladesh’s upcoming national election.