The Jatiya Party, a partner of the government, split in two factions on Monday evening bringing an end to the move to curtail powers of party chairman from HM Ershad.
Ershad’s wife Raushan Ershad will now lead the breakaway faction, party leaders said.
The announcement of split came a day after Ershad made his younger brother GM Quader co-chairman of the party.
‘At a meeting of the party attended by some party presidium members, made Raushan Ershad chairperson of the party,’ party secretary general Ziauddin Ahmed Bablu said.
Ziauddin, who made the announcement at a beefing at Raushan’s Baridhara house in the city, also told New Age that they disowned GM Quader as co-chairman as there was no such portfolio in the party constitution.
Asked about the position of Ershad, Ziauddin said, ‘We cannot say anything about Ershad.’
After the announcement, Ershad at a hurriedly called press conference in Rangpur said that the announcement was illegal and warned that action would be taken against those who were involved in the process.
‘It is a part of deep conspiracy…I am the chairman and am responsible to convene party meeting…Convening any meeting keeping me absent is illegal,’ he said.
Ershad, also special envoy to prime minister Sheikh Hasina, on Sunday suddenly declared party’s presidium member GM Quader as its co-chairman during a council session of the party’s Rangpur unit.
Party leaders said that the announcement indicated that Quader was going to succeed Ershad as the party chief.
At the council session, Ershad also announced that party’s central council would be held in April. He also named presidium members GM Quader and ABM Ruhul Amin Hawlader as convener and member-secretary of the council preparation committee.
The Jatiya Party virtually remained divided into two for over two years as Ershad remained rigid for boycotting the January 5, 2014 elections, boycotted by all opposition parties.
Ershad’s group included his brother GM Quader, former secretary general Ruhul Amin Howladar and presdium member Masud Parvez Sohel Rana.
Other faction led by Raushan includes presidium member Anisul Islam Mahmud, also the water resources minister, secretary general Ziauddin Bablu and chief whip of the opposition in parliament Tajul Islam Chowdhury.
Raushan group contested the January 5, 2014 polls and secured 34 seats and ruling Awami League made a minister and two state ministers from Jatiya Party. Ershad several times wanted his party will come out from the government and criticised the government which Raushan’s group repeatedly rejected.
Source: New Age