Bangladesh's NCP Struggles to Define Identity Amid Jamaat Alliance

September 25, 2026 at 04:02 PM2 min

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National Citizen Party convener Nahid Islam criticized Prime Minister Tarique Rahman at a Jamaat-e-Islami-led rally on September 19, saying Rahman must choose between fleeing by helicopter or resigning with dignity. The NCP, born from the 2024 student uprising, now routinely joins Jamaat in protests and alliances, raising questions about its independent identity.

Key Facts

NCP convener Nahid Islam said on September 19 that Prime Minister Tarique Rahman must decide whether to flee by helicopter or resign with dignity.
The NCP joined an electoral alliance led by Jamaat-e-Islami before the February 2026 national election.
The NCP was launched in February 2025 and called for a new constitution and a 'Second Republic'.
Jamaat-e-Islami sided with Pakistan against Bangladesh's independence in 1971, and some of its members collaborated with Pakistani forces during the genocide.

NCP's Strategic Alliance

The NCP says its relationship with Jamaat-e-Islami is strategic, not ideological. Before the February 2026 national election, the NCP joined an electoral alliance led by Jamaat. For a new party without a strong nationwide organization, the calculation was understandable, as elections require candidates, polling agents, local networks, money and organization across hundreds of constituencies. Jamaat had the machinery of an established party, but its history made the NCP's choice contentious.

Origins and Promise

The NCP emerged from the student protests that brought down the Awami League government in August 2024. When the NCP was launched in February 2025, its leaders had come directly from the student movement that helped bring down Sheikh Hasina's authoritarian rule. At its launch, the NCP called for a new constitution and a 'Second Republic', promising democratic institutions, an end to corruption and nepotism, and politics based on equality and representation. Thousands attended the launch in Dhaka, and the party presented itself as a centrist force and an alternative to the older parties.

Identity Challenge

Less than two years after emerging from the student-led uprising, the party is struggling to show voters what still makes it politically distinct. The NCP is now in parliament, but how it arrived there has created a more difficult question: can it still convince voters that it represents something genuinely new? The party routinely joins Jamaat in long marches, alliance meetings and parliamentary protests. Nahid Islam's criticism of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman at a Jamaat-led rally on September 19 underscored the blurring of lines between the two parties.