In a major blow to the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), over 400 of its leaders and activists from Satkania and Lohagara upazilas have officially defected to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).
The formal announcement was made on Wednesday night during two separate events held at local community centers in the two upazilas. The defecting members cited the LDP’s alliance with Jamaat-e-Islami as the primary reason for their resignation.
Lohagara Defections
In Lohagara, more than 200 members joined the BNP under the leadership of several key local figures, including Shah Alam, former president of the Upazila Ganatantrik Swechasebak Dal; Nurul Alam, general secretary of the Sadar Union LDP; Abdu Chobur, organizational secretary of Sadar Union LDP and a UP member; and Mohammad Shafi, vice-president of the Barahatia Union LDP.
The welcoming ceremony was attended by Nazmul Mostafa Amin, the BNP’s nominated candidate for the Chattogram-15 (Satkania-Lohagara) constituency, and Asahab Uddin Chowdhury, joint convener of the Chattogram South District BNP.
Welcoming the newcomers, Asahab Uddin Chowdhury said, “This joining will play a vital role in building a ‘New Bangladesh’ under the leadership of Tarique Rahman by upholding the ideals of Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman. It will further strengthen the BNP’s organizational activities in Lohagara.”
Explaining their decision, Shah Alam stated, “We resigned from the LDP because of its alliance with Jamaat. We are inspired by the BNP’s role in establishing the rights of the people and the dignity of the vote under the leadership of Chairman Tarique Rahman.”
Satkania Defections
Simultaneously, another event was held at approximately 9:00 PM in the Purangar Union of Satkania. Led by Rashed Hossain, former chairman of the Purangar Union Parishad, another group of over 200 LDP activists joined the BNP.
They were received by Idris Miah, convener of the Chattogram South District BNP, along with Jasim Uddin, the BNP-nominated candidate for Chattogram-14 (Chandanaish-Satkania partial), and other senior district leaders including Jamal Hossain and Mujibur Rahman.
LDP Downplays the Move
Responding to the mass defection, Golam Kibria, general secretary of the Chattogram South District LDP, told reporters that the departure would not weaken the party’s organizational structure.
“Only a handful of those who joined are office-bearers. The rest are not on our listed roster; they might be general supporters or members of the public,” he claimed.
