The Bangladesh Nationalist Party is expected to start negotiations with its allies in a day or two on sharing seats for contesting the ninth parliamentary elections as they have decided to join the polls subject to the government’s acceptance of its four-point demand, including deferral of the ballot by 10 days.
   The Awami League and its allies, which have started filing nomination papers, have already plunged into negotiations over distribution and adjustment of electoral constituencies for the polls.
   ‘We will start discussions on sharing seats immediately after the government and the Election Commission come up with clear statement accepting our demands, including holding the ballot on December 28’, BNP standing committee member Khandakar Mosharraf Hossain said Friday. ‘We are prepared for the upcoming polls as we had laid a groundwork for the [stalled] January 22 [2007] elections.’
   The BNP has, however, prepared a short list of candidates for almost all of the 300 constituencies with an initial plan to field candidates for about 250 constituencies, according to a senior party leader.
   It has finalised candidates for about 175 constituencies and more than 100 have been given go-ahead for the polls, he said.
   The party is likely to invite applications from aspiring candidates for nomination anytime this week, he said.
   The parliamentary board of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, a major ally of BNP, met on November 19 to select candidates. The meeting was adjourned as senior party leaders were engaged in hectic overt and covert discussions with BNP, as well as with the government, over the issue of polls deferral to ensure BNP’s participation, according to an assistant secretary general of Jamaat-e-Islami.
   ‘The board is likely to sit in a day or two to finalise the list of the party candidates’, said a central working committee member of Jamaat.
   The BNP is also likely to share seats with other like-minded parties, including its allies Bangladesh Jatiya Party factions and Islami Oikya Jote.
   BNP had nominated 252 candidates for the stalled January 22, 2007 elections giving Jamaat had 37 seats and other allies 11.
   On the other hand, the Awami League has started preliminary negotiations with Jatiya Party, Liberal Democratic Party and left leaning parties with an idea of fielding AL candidates for 240 constituencies and giving 60 seats to its allies, according to party sources.
   The AL has given go-ahead to 150 party candidates for respective constituencies. The party is likely to make adjustment in 90 constituencies subject to negotiations with its allies and BNP’s participation in the polls.
   Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina held primary discussions with Jatiya Party president Hussain Muhammad Ershad and Liberal Democratic Party president Oli Ahmed on contesting the elections together. Senior AL leaders held discussions with its left leaning allies.
   The Jatiya Party is demanding 60 seats although the AL is primarily prepared to give 40 seats to the party. Fifty JP men had filed nominations as AL-led alliance candidates for the stalled January 22, 2007 elections.
   The LDP is demanding 20 seats while the AL seems to be ready to give them 15 seats.
   The left leaning partners of the alliance are demanding 15 seats. The Workers Party has demanded seven seats, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal faction led by Hasanul Haq seven, Ganantantri Party five and Samyabadi Dal one.
   But the AL is seemingly ready to give 8 seats to its left leaning partners, and among them, Workers Party is likely to get three, JSD three and Ganatantri Party one.
   The nomination of Workers Party president Rashed Khan Menon for Dhaka-8, party’s general secretary Bimal Biswas for Norail-1 and politburo member Fazle Hossain Badsha for Rajshahi-2, have been initially finalised.
   Rashed Khan Menon told New Age Friday, ‘Discussion on seat sharing is likely to be suspended for a few days subject to BNP’s participation in the polls.’
   JSD leaders Hasanul Haq Inu will file nomination for Kushtia-1, Mainuddin Khan Badal for a Chittagong constituency and Shirin Akhter for Feni-1. Ganatantri Party president Mohammad Nurul Islam may get nomination for a Noakhali constituency.
   The AL will allot about five seats to Islamist parties, including Islamic Oikya Jote led by Misbahur Rahman.

Source: New Age