Bangladesh’s Gen-Z party faces revolt over Islamist alliance, risking its future

Sign up now: Get insights on Asias fast-moving developments

Bangladesh Army soldiers stand guard next to supporters of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) as they gather to welcome BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman after his return from London, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, December 25, 2025. REUTERS/Fatima Tuj Johora

DHAKA, Dec 29 - A Bangladeshi youth-driven party born out of the countrys 2024 uprising is facing an open revolt from within after sealing an election alliance with an Islamist group, a move analysts say could jeopardise its future and reinforce established parties.

At least 30 senior leaders of the National Citizen Party (NCP) have openly opposed its alliance with Jamaat-e-Islami, announced on Sunday, with several resigning in protest.

The Muslim-majority South Asian nation goes to the polls on February 12.

Before the deal, opinion polls had predicted Jamaat finishing a close second behind the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, while the NCP lagged far behind in third place.

The NCP presented itself as a youth-driven alternative to traditional power structures. That identity is now under serious strain, said H.M. Nazmul Alam, an academic. Youth-based movements do not collapse only because they lose elections. They collapse when they lose clarity and internal unity.

ALLIANCE FOR GREATER UNITY

The NCP was formed earlier this year by leaders of the protests that ousted long-time Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in August, 2024, forcing her to flee to India. Driven by Gen-Z activists born after the late 1990s, it says it aims