The last bi-annual conference of the Bogra district unit BNP was held in 2010 when Saiful Islam was made president and Zainal Abedin Chan general secretary. However, conflict between the two over establishing dominance in the committee has created division among the party’s supporters.
The year 2019 was eventful for the district unit BNP. The duo got hold of the posts till April 29, when the conflicting groups announced two separate convening committees, triggering tension among district committee leaders.
After two weeks, the party’s acting chairman intervened and declared a 31-member convening committee headed by Bogra-6 (Sadar) constituency MP Golam Mohammad Siraj on May 15.
The unilateral selection by party’s high-ups worsened the situation, as leaders and activists broke the chain of command – they kept the party office on Nawabbari Road in the city under lock and key and held various programs, including protest rallies, demanding the removal of Siraj.
The BNP central unit came down heavily to quell the rebellion, expelling 16 leaders, including several municipality councilors, from the party.
On August 16, the Siraj-led committee dissolved all ward, union, municipality and upazila units of the party the same year to reorganize the committee at the grassroots level.
By August 31, convening committees of 24 organizational units were formed, each with 101 members, who will elect the president, general secretary and organizing secretary of the district unit.
After a long pause, MP Siraj was removed from the post of the district unit convener on November 13, 2021 and was replaced by former president Rezaul Karim Badshah.
Recently, Badshah announced that the district unit BNP’s bi-annual conference would be held on November 2 and also formed a conference management committee.
Since then, over a dozen potential candidates for the top three posts – Badshah and the two top leaders of the 2010 committee and their followers – have turned up and are trying to attract the attention of the party high command.
The president hopefuls are Badshah; Saiful Islam, president of the previous committee; Zainal Abedin Chan, the former general secretary; Fazlul Bari Talukder Belal, who has resigned as the joint convener of the conference management committee.
Contenders for the general secretary post are former chairman of Sadar Upazila Parishad Ali Azgar Talukdar Hena and former president of district unit Chhatra Dal MR Islam Swadhin.
Besides, campaigns have started for the post of organizational secretary on behalf of former student leaders Hasanuzzaman Palash, Mahidul Islam Gafur, Abdul Aziz Hira, Sheikh Tahauddin Nine, Sahid-un-Nabi Salam, KM Khairul Bashar and Khademul Islam Khadem.
Party insiders say more names will be heard once the voter list is published.
The advisers to the conference management committee are BNP chairperson’s advisers -- former district BNP president Advocate AKM Mahbubur Rahman and former MP Helaluzzaman Talukder Lalu, Bogra Sadar MP Siraj and former MP Kazi Rafiqul Islam. Advocate AKM Saiful Islam is the convener of the management committee.
