In the recently held election on February 12, 2026, an election which has been widely regarded as free and fair, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), under the leadership of Tarek Rahman, the surviving offspring of Late Ziaur Rahman and Late Begum Khaleda Zia, – two of the most adored and revered leaders of Bangladesh -, has returned to power, after almost two and a half decades.
BNP has won the elections with a two-thirds majority in the parliament and has since formed the government with Tarek Rahman as the Prime Minister.
The 2026 BNP government
The astounding electoral victory is indeed a source of much joy to the 2026 BNP which is also a vindication of years of suffering the party and its leaders have endured, though, and this is deeply concerning – the 2026 BNP victory could not have come at a more challenging time, at a time when Bangladesh is confronted with numerous challenges, some of which are inherited, and some, caused by recent global events.
The challenges
In recent times, Bangladesh has experienced drastic economic, social, and political changes – some good and some not so good.
On the positive side, the economy has diversified and has been growing consistently since the 1990s, though lately, due to rampant corruption and the near absence of transparency and accountability in public sector expenditure, and burgeoning debt, the economy has been faltering.
Indeed, changes at the political, social, and institutional levels have been anything but inspiring, say for example, in recent years and more noticeably, during the last decade and a half, Bangladesh has experienced significant democracy deficits and moral lapses, contributing to rise of authoritarianism, thuggery and kleptocracy, election rigging, flagrant loot and plunder of the national exchequer, extortions, and breakdown in the rule of law, and politicisation of the public institutions, that has since turned public administration into a rent-seeking, inept and abusive institution.
To add to the woes, recent global events, such as the Israel/US/Iran war, which have caused a great deal of uncertainty in the global economy, threaten the economic and political stability of Bangladesh as well, adding to the existing woes of the country and the newly elected 2026 BNP government.
Indeed, for the newly formed BNP government, the road ahead is certainly not strewn with roses.
So, where do the 2026 BNP go from here? How well is the Party prepared to tackle the evolving challenges? Can 2026 BNP take lessons from its own, referred to here as “the BNP”, Zia’s BNP?
“the BNP,” Zia’s BNP
Interestingly and quite coincidentally, the challenges that Bangladesh is currently facing – economic uncertainties, moral lapse, entrenched corruption, inept bureaucracy, a fractured society – are the very hurdles that Ziaur Rahman, the founder of “the BNP,” encountered when he took over the reign of the country in 1976.
After assuming power, Ziaur Rahman, a person of impeccable integrity, intellect and vision realised that to rescue the country from the war ravaged regressing economy and socially fractured, administratively disjointed and morally degraded Bangladesh as things were at the time, what were needed not empty words nor more politics but firstly, social cohesion; secondly, a strategic plan to revive the economy; and thirdly and most importantly an efficient and accountable public administration.
Accordingly, Zia embarked on the interlinking tasks of social mobilisation and economic remediation strategically.
Social mobilisation
Underpinned by Bangladesh’s long political, social, and cultural heritages, Zia introduced the idea of “Bangladeshi nationalism, an inclusive and distinctive national identity that, regardless of religion and race, helped bond people and made people feel proud of being a Bangladeshi, which also helped assert Bangladesh’s political and cultural sovereign existence.
The economy and the governing team
Then the economy. Given that the economy was broken and mismanaged and that the GDP was regressing at -1.7% per annum, Ziaur Rahman formed a governing team composed of men and women of high cerebral capacity and moral integrity, assigning the Team to formulate policies and plans that can successfully address both short-term crisis as well as resuscitate the moribund economy and put the country on a growth trajectory.
The governing team produced the “Two-Year Economic Restoration Plan, TYRP (1976-1978).”
Backed by strict management accountability processes that Zia himself introduced and engaged with directly, the TYRP helped rebuild the war-torn infrastructure and put the regressing economy on a growth track, which helped stimulate GDP to grow from -1.7% in 1976 to 4.5% in1980 per annum.
Launching of “the BNP”
Then in 1978, Zia took steps to transition the country from military to civic governance and launched a new political party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party – “the BNP.”
Newly formed “the BNP,” Zia’s BNP, continued to pursue the same strategic framework in governance, namely, social mobilisation and bonding people through the introduction of the concept of “Bangladeshi nationalism,” inspiring people to engage in nation-building activities; govern through a competent governing team; and formulate pragmatic consensus-based people-centric policies, etc.
These initiatives continued to revive and stimulate the war-torn, famine-stricken, and until recently, ineptly run, faltering economy, with such success that the New York Times reported at the time that Ziaur Rahman “…helped put a collapsing nation on its feet.”
Similarly, noting Zia’s devotion to and prioritisation of grass-roots development, late Malcom Fraser, the then Prime Minister of Australia, once acknowledged, “…One of the principal reasons for the success and popularity of [Zia] was his dedication to the development of rural Bangladesh and its immense population, who worked hard to overcome the crushing problems of food shortages and poverty…”
Zia’s assassination – Khaleda Zia, the torchbearer
A military mutiny killed Ziaur Rahman in May 1981. Zia’s murder was followed by a military coup by General Ershad, the then Army Chief, who dislodged the sitting BNP government and put BNP into political exile.
Late Begum Khaleda Zia, wife of the assassinated leader Ziaur Rahman, a housewife then, took charge of “the BNP” in 1984, which at the time was in a state of complete disarray.
Khaleda Zia distanced herself and her party, “the BNP,” from General Ershad’s political diktats and, by doing so, denied Ershad, the military ruler, the political legitimacy his corrupt and autocratic government desperately needed.
During Ershad’s reign (1982-1990), Khaleda Zia spent most of her time underground, reorganising and strengthening “the BNP.”
She re-energised the moribund BNP into a cohesive nationalist political voice. Soon, she and her party, “the BNP,” in conjunction with other opposition political parties, launched a movement against Ershad, ousted the military autocrat from power, participated in the election that took place soon after, in 1990 and won, forming a government, with her as the Prime Minister.
Governing team
Khaleda Zia followed Zia’s, her late husband’s, footsteps in the selection of the governing team and in governance. In forming her governing team she gave, as did Zia, preference to quality over loyalty and thus was made of men and women of merit and integrity, say for example, her choice of Saifur Rahman, a man of high technical competence, and moral integrity as the finance minister, who undertook drastic economic reforms, and built an economic architecture, that transformed and put Bangladesh on a growth trajectory that continues to stimulate growth even today.
Mr Saifur Rahman’s reform ideas were so impressive and transformative that many developing countries, including Bangladesh’s big neighbour, India, borrowed his ideas, such that Dr Manmohan Singh, former Prime Minister of India, once noted, “I learnt economic reform from Mr Saifur Rahman.”
What made “the BNP” unique and enduring
In summary, the factors that made “the BNP” unique, relevant, and appealing, a party that made transformative changes while in government are the following: ethical leadership; social mobilisation through the introduction of the concept of “Bangladeshi nationalism,” an inclusive national identity concept that inspired and mobilised people in nation-building; selection of men and women of merit and integrity to form governing teams who helped formulate context-specific pragmatic plans and reforms; strict overview of progress of implementation of policies and programmes at the highest level of the government and more importantly, civic engagement in governance at the grass-roots level, say for example the idea of “gram sarkar” (village government).
The 2026 BNP government – not a good beginning
The victorious BNP has since formed a government, but the beginning is anything but illuminating.
Non-endorsement of the July Sanad
Firstly, by refusing to sign on and embrace the July Sanad, a post-Uprising civic-endorsed reform framework, a Magna Carta which has been designed to broaden democratic engagements and strengthen checks and balances in governance, the 2026 BNP government has trampled Uprising’s aspirations and, by doing so, has shaken citizen trust in the government, not a good beginning.
Poor choice of governing team
Secondly, unlike “the BNP” (Zia’s/Khaleda Zia’ BNP), which always formed and relied on governing teams made of people of merit and integrity and allowed them full autonomy to formulate pragmatic policies and programmes, the 2026 BNP government seems to have done the opposite; it seems to have opted for bullies over brains.
Indeed, as they say, the proof is in the pudding; the recent statements and announcements of some senior members of the 2026 BNP’s governing team sound more like a cacophony at a village bazaar and not those that reflect their understanding of and readiness to address the challenges that Bangladesh is confronted with, currently. This is not expected of a government that people voted for overwhelmingly, a government that needs to demonstrate to the nation that its head is on the ground, aware of the issues, challenges, and solutions. So far, they have not.
The way forward – reinvent “the BNP”
Given the visible gap between aspirations of the people and 2026 BNP’s not-so-inspiring beginning – a poor quality governing team, a complete lack of awareness of issues and challenges, and arrogant behaviour – time is ripe for the 2026 BNP to look back and reinvent “the BNP” and incorporate in governance the practices and norms such as social mobilisation, a merit-based governing team and context based strategic planning that would help overcome the looming crisis and pave the way for sustained economic growth. In this regard, the 2026 BNP government may follow the example of Ziaur Rahman’s crisis remediation 1976-1978 Reconstruction Plan, and formulate on an urgent basis, a two-year Resilience Plan and address on an urgent basis, the looming crisis of deepening poverty and hunger and arrange timely delivery of basic needs such as food and fuel to the needy and to ensure sustained economic growth, recalibration of the economy to diversify and adjust to the shifting global economic configurations
The 2026 BNP must also adopt zero tolerance and introduce checks and balances to combat all forms of corruption and extortion, which are often conducted in the party’s name.
Finally, the government must endorse the soonest, the July Sanad, which was endorsed through a referendum, aims to strengthen and promote inclusive democracy, curb abuse, and ensure social justice in the society.
