[🇧🇩] A New Political Party: National Citizen Party

[Saif]

Asif fires back at Cumilla Zilla Parishad administrator over fund claims

NCP’s spokesperson says Mostak Mia confused special allocations with revenue funds while making allegations against him and Hasnat Abdullah

www.thedailystar.net

Asif fires back at Cumilla Zilla Parishad administrator over fund claims

NCP’s spokesperson says Mostak Mia confused special allocations with revenue funds while making allegations against him and Hasnat Abdullah

Star Online Report

File Photo

National Citizen Party (NCP) Spokesperson Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain today criticised the remarks by Cumilla Zilla Parishad administrator and said the money spent in different upazilas of Cumilla was mostly given as special allocation from the Local Government Division when he was in charge of the ministry as an adviser of the interim government.

“More than 90 percent of the money spent in different upazilas of Cumilla came as special allocation from the Local Government Division,” he said after visiting the fire-ravaged slum in Dhaka’s Kalshi this afternoon.

Yesterday, Cumilla Zilla Parishad Administrator Md Mostak Mia alleged that under the name of “coordinators”, Asif took Tk 15 crore to Muradnagar upazila and Hasnat Abdullah (NCP MP) took Tk 10 crore to Debidwar from the Cumilla Zilla Parishad during the tenure of the interim government

Asif said special allocation and revenue funds are not the same.

“If they confuse special allocation with revenue funds, then they have no qualification to sit in such positions,” he said.

“At first, he [Mostak] said the money was taken. Later, when Hasnat Abdullah called him, he said he did not mean it was taken personally, but that allocations were given,” Asif said.

Commenting on Kalshi slum fire, Asif called for a proper investigation, alleging that the incident may not have been accidental.

“The authorities must ensure rehabilitation and compensation for the affected residents before taking any further step regarding the land,” he said.

“If the residents are evicted from this place without rehabilitation, we will consider it a political takeover,” he added.​

 

[Saif]

NCP alleges egg pelting at Nasiruddin Patwary, attack on convoy in Jashore

The National Citizen Party (NCP) has alleged that eggs were thrown at its Chief Coordinator, Nasiruddin Patwary, and that his convoy came under attack in the Sadipur area of Jashore’s Benapole today.

en.prothomalo.com

NCP alleges egg pelting at Nasiruddin Patwary, attack on convoy in Jashore
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• NCP claims egg attack on convoy denied by police​
• ​
• Broken window photo posted; police say no complaint filed​
• ​
• Party alleges two assaults; police official refutes incident​

Jashore Office
Published: 03 Jun 2026, 18: 14

National Citizen Party (NCP) alleges that its leader, Nasiruddin Patwary, came under attack after inspecting the Sadipur border area in Benapole, Jashore on 3 June 2026. Prothom Alo

The National Citizen Party (NCP) has alleged that eggs were thrown at its Chief Coordinator, Nasiruddin Patwary, and that his convoy came under attack in the Sadipur area of Jashore’s Benapole today, Wednesday.

Police, however, have denied the reports of any such incident.

According to the NCP, the incident took place around 1:15 pm on Wednesday (3 June) while Nasirruddin Patwary was returning from a visit to the Sadipur border. The party claimed that Khan Miftahul Mostafiz and Taskin Ahmed of Chhatra Shakti, along with Rupam Ahsan of Jubo Shakti, were injured in the attack. Patwary and other party leaders have since left for Dhaka.

Khalid Saifullah Jewel, a member of the NCP’s central convening committee, told Prothom Alo that NCP leaders–party activists led by Patwary visited the Sadipur border today to protest against push-in attempts across the border.

He said the delegation held discussions with local residents and a press briefing with local journalists in the area at around 11:30am. While returning from Sadipur, several youths allegedly threw eggs at their vehicle before fleeing. No one inside the vehicle was hit. According to Jewel, a second attack took place when the convoy reached the Benapole land port market area, where members of Chhatra Dal allegedly led another assault.

However, Ashraf Hossain, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Benapole Police Station has denied the allegation.

“No such attack took place. No one has filed any complaint either. We do not understand how the NCP leaders are making such claims,” he said.

Meanwhile, in a Facebook post accompanied by a photograph showing a broken vehicle window, Patwary wrote: “Our vehicle was attacked on the way back. The car was vandalised.”​

 

[Saif]

NCP unveils Tk 8.52 lakh crore ‘shadow budget’

National Citizen Party (NCP) leaders, while unveiling their shadow budget for the upcoming fiscal year yesterday, said they do not want rhetoric-heavy, numbers-based, or superficial budgets that exist only on paper.

www.thedailystar.net

2026-27 fiscal year

NCP unveils Tk 8.52 lakh crore ‘shadow budget’

Staff Correspondent

National Citizen Party (NCP) leaders, while unveiling their shadow budget for the upcoming fiscal year yesterday, said they do not want rhetoric-heavy, numbers-based, or superficial budgets that exist only on paper.

“Every single penny allocated must be used for the public, ensuring that the tangible benefits of the budget reach citizens,” NCP Chief Organiser (South) and lawmaker Hasnat Abdullah said at the programme in Banglamotor.

He said the shadow budget, aimed at an equitable and discrimination-free economy, was prepared after more than two months of consultations with various stakeholders.

He added that the current government has inherited an economy in deep crisis from the Awami League, with classified loans exceeding 30 percent of total loans and over $12 billion spent annually on fuel imports.

NCP’s Shadow Budget Committee Chief and lawmaker Atiq Mujahid presented a Tk 8,52,157 crore shadow budget for FY 2026-27, outlining an alternative fiscal plan focused on reform, job creation, investment, and fiscal discipline.

According to the proposal, the Annual Development Programme would be Tk 2,52,667 crore.

The highest allocation is proposed for education and technology at Tk 1,24,425 crore. Other allocations include Tk 52,338 crore for health, Tk 87,567 crore for public administration, and Tk 39,745 crore for defence. Interest payments are proposed to be reduced to Tk 1,10,450 crore.

The NCP said revenue would be increased mainly by expanding the tax base rather than raising pressure on lower and middle-income groups.

The shadow budget also proposes raising the tax-free income threshold to Tk 4.5 lakh a year. For women and senior citizens, the threshold would be Tk 4.75 lakh, and for persons with disabilities and third-gender taxpayers, Tk 5 lakh.

The party also claimed Tk 46,000 crore could be saved through improved expenditure efficiency, including better ADP project selection, reduced interest costs, lower subsidy leakage, improved payroll and procurement efficiency, and reduced operational expenses.

The shadow budget could influence the national budget if the government aims to make it more inclusive and people-centred, Atiq Mujahid told the Daily Star.

“If the government has the goodwill and wants to make the budget inclusive, pro-people, and beneficial for the state, then our shadow budget can have a major effect,” he said.

He said their proposal contains several “unique” recommendations that are usually absent from conventional budgets.

He also said the government takes about Tk 1.43 lakh crore from banks and claimed the proposal shows ways to increase revenue, reduce interest payments, and lower borrowing costs.

He further said the proposal on electric vehicles could help reduce fuel costs significantly.

He added that although the budget size is increasing, its impact remains limited due to inefficient allocation.​

 

[Saif]

FY27 budget debt-driven, hollow: NCP

The National Citizen Party on Friday rejected the proposed national budget for the 2026–27 financial year, terming it hollow, debt-driven, and disconnected from people’s expectations.

www.newagebd.net

FY27 budget debt-driven, hollow: NCP
Staff Correspondent 12 June, 2026, 19:32

The National Citizen Party holds a press on the proposed national budget for the 2026–27 financial year at its central office in the Bangla Motor area of Dhaka on Friday. | New Age photo

The National Citizen Party on Friday rejected the proposed national budget for the 2026–27 financial year, terming it hollow, debt-driven, and disconnected from people’s expectations.

Party convener and opposition chief whip Nahid Islam, speaking at a press conference at the Chattogram Circuit House in Kazir Dewri on Friday, said that the proposed budget lacked any effective plan or reform measure to guide the country’s fragile economy, New Age staff correspondent in Chattogram reported.

Finance minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury on Thursday placed the Tk 9.38 lakh crore budget in Jatiya Sangsad in Dhaka.

Citing that the proposed budget has set a revenue collection target of approximately Tk 6.90 lakh crore, he said ‘The revenue target is detached from reality as such a huge amount has never been collected in Bangladesh’s history. Mobilising this revenue under the existing administrative and taxation structures is not possible.’

At another press conference at the NCP’s temporary central office at Banglamotor in Dhaka, the party-backed lawmaker for the Kurigram-2 constituency and chief of NCP shadow budget committee, Atik Mujahid, described the proposed budget as a ‘deceptive’ and ‘white elephant’ budget that failed to reflect public aspirations.

The NCP leader said, ‘The post-July Bangladesh deserved a realistic and discrimination-free budget but has instead received a hollow and manifesto-driven budget full of rhetoric.’

He said that Bangladesh already carried more than Tk 10 lakh crore in foreign debt and around Tk 8 lakh crore in domestic borrowing from the banking sector.

‘Banks are already under stress, yet the budget contains no specific measures for banking reforms. If borrowing from banks becomes difficult, the alternative may be currency printing, which will increase inflation,’ he cautioned.

The NCP lawmaker also dismissed the government claim of reducing value-added tax, calling it another form of deception.

He expressed concern over the requirement of tax identification number for opening bank accounts, saying that low-income people might avoid formal banking channels for fear of taxation.

‘This could expand the informal economy, discourage savings in banks, and ultimately reduce investment,’ he said.

Mujahid criticised the proposed advance tax on small businesses, arguing that it would discourage the growth of small enterprises.

The NCP, he said, had proposed raising the tax-free-income threshold to Tk 4,50,000, but the government increased it from Tk 350,000 to only Tk 375,000.

‘Even with the inflation rate taken into account, the threshold should have been at least Tk 3,85,000,’ he said.

He also criticised the budget for failing to clearly address money laundering, the legalisation of undisclosed wealth and anti-corruption issues.

‘We believe this budget sends a very negative signal for the nation,’ he said.

Commenting on sectoral allocations, Mujahid said that it remained unclear whether the increased allocations for education and health would improve infrastructure, service quality or human resources.

NCP spokesperson Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain was scheduled to attend the press conference as chief guest but could not join the event.

NCP central leaders were present at the press conference.​

 

[Bilal9]

It is possible that NCP could one day become a dominant party in Bangladesh, but the odds are currently uncertain and probably lower than those of the established parties. This may change - hopefully.

The party is very new, and political dominance usually takes years of organization, electoral success, and coalition-building. If many voters want a new alternative, NCP could benefit. NCP was successfully able to convert protest energy into lasting political organization. However - NCP has also faced criticism, defections, and questions about strategy and alliances.

Political frustration with a governing or formerly governing party often creates opportunities for new movements. Around the world, new parties have sometimes grown rapidly when large numbers of voters become dissatisfied with established parties. However, turning dissatisfaction into lasting electoral success is difficult.

In Bangladesh, whether the NCP can benefit from anti-Awami League sentiment would depend on things such as:

• - How widespread and durable that sentiment is. Anger toward a party can fade over time, especially if political conditions change.
• - Whether NCP develops a clear positive program. Voters often want more than opposition to a rival; they also want to know what policies a new party would pursue.
• - Organization and local networks. Established parties typically have extensive grassroots structures, local leaders, campaign experience, and funding.
• - Leadership and credibility. New parties need leaders who can convince voters they are capable of governing.
• - The broader political environment. Electoral rules, alliances, economic conditions, and the performance of other parties all matter.

One thing political science research consistently finds is that protest votes and governing votes are not the same thing. A party can attract support because people are angry at an incumbent or former ruling party, but becoming the dominant national party usually requires building a broad coalition that extends beyond protest voters.

NCP could potentially channel anti–Awami League sentiment into electoral gains, but whether that translates into becoming Bangladesh's dominant party (as stated by "Shillong" Salahuddin recently, one would surmise because he is saving his own political survival by that statement) would depend on NCP ability to convert protest energy into a durable political organization and a convincing governing alternative.

It is incontrovertibly true and undeniable (with proof) that under former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League - that Bangladesh experienced severe democratic backsliding under her rule, with serious issues such as restrictions on opposition parties, media pressure, politicization of institutions, and controversial "sham" elections.

There is certainly a political argument that anti-Awami League sentiment could become a powerful political force in Bangladesh.

If a large share of Bangladeshis come to view the pre-2024 system as an "eknayak-tantra" (one-person rule or personalist authoritarian rule), then a party that successfully presents itself as the vehicle of the July movement's aspirations could gain significant support.

However, anti-incumbent sentiment alone rarely guarantees long-term dominance. A party like the NCP would still need:

• - nationwide organization,
• - credible leadership beyond student activism,
• - policies on the economy, governance, and foreign relations, and
• - the ability to hold together a coalition once the immediate anger at the old order fades.