If the interim government bans the Jatiyo Party, it will make another mistake. A political party cannot be banned over a single incident. Such a ban is not really possible; it is not even gaining public support. People think this is excessive. It is not needed.
The government faced heavy criticism even when it banned the activities of the Awami League. Domestic and international stakeholders are not appreciating the ban. I believe the government should think about this issue more seriously.
When the Awami League was banned, the way Hasnat Abdullah and other Anti-Discrimination Movement leaders and activists just went to the Jamuna and the party was banned overnight — I don't think it will be something as simple as that (in the case of the Jatiyo Party).
Instead of declaring this faction of the Jatiyo Party banned, it could temporarily be suspended. It doesn't seem like doing something like this would be too much of a hassle. Because the Jatiyo Party is politically disappearing anyway.
The information we are getting, the survey results we are getting, show that even in Rangpur and Dinajpur, traditional strongholds of the Jatiyo Party, BNP is now taking over its space, and Jamaat is also gaining some ground. In that sense, the Jatiyo Party has turned into a spent force or a fading power.
So if a strong decision is taken against the Jatiyo Party tomorrow, the day after tomorrow or in a week, I will not be surprised.
But I would not consider it a wise step. Because it will make this declining power somewhat relevant, which is completely unnecessary. In English, we might call it flushing out politically or bringing someone politically irrelevant back into focus through sudden decisions or actions.
In my opinion, it would be far better to let the Jatiyo Party fade away through the normal process. Just as JaSoD faded away, many parties have disappeared in this way.
The writer is an adviser and senior research fellow, BRAC Institute of Governance and Development, BRAC University.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely of the author's. Dhaka Stream does not endorse it.
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