Md. Shahjahan Bashar, Dhaka Correspondent:
Despite various decisions to keep the Awami League away from the elections in the current political context of Bangladesh, the party’s strong vote bank has become an important topic of discussion in national politics. Former secretary and political analyst Abu Alam Shahid Khan recently participated in a television talk show and expressed his frank opinion on this matter.
Shahid Khan said, “Those who consider the Awami League a mafia party and are in favor of banning them, even they finally admit that the Awami League has at least 20 to 25 percent of the votes. Now if we take 120 million voters, 25 percent means about 30 million votes. And these 30 million votes mean 30 million families. So there is no point in saying that the Awami League has been completely wiped out or that they cannot be found.”
He mentioned that the Awami League‘s permanent support in the elections has become a cause of fear or apprehension for many. In his words, “Whenever there is an election, everyone will become active in the election. But in the current situation, the activities of the Awami League have been banned, the Election Commission has removed their symbol from the ballot. Now we do not know what will happen in the future. However, this vote bank of the Awami League has become a headache for some, a fear of poker for some, and a fear of ghosts for others.”
Shahid Khan reminded us of the historical context as well as the politicalreality. He said, “Even if there are no witnesses to history, history cannot be denied. In the post-August period or even before that, our liberation war, the freedom struggle, the language movement, the ’54 elections, the ’62 movement, the six-point movement of ’66, the ’69 mass uprising, the ’70 elections and the liberation war imposed by the Pakistani junta—we have seen these with our own eyes. These are an integral part of Bangladesh’s history.”
Referring to the younger generation, he said, “We have many young people who have not seen the Liberation War. We ourselves have not seen many things—like the World War. But we learn from history. If history can be studied beyond personal thoughts, then many things will become clear.”
Political analysts believe that his statement has given rise to a new discussion in the current politicalarena. The political future of the Awami League and how their vote bank will affect the next election—that is now the center of everyone’s curiosity.