Jaamat e Islam, as a party, is at a stage they have not been at for 15 years. Back in the national politics arena after being banned under the last fascist regime, they seem to have come back stronger than ever before, aiming to become the second largest party in the national parliament and to become the opposition party after Awami League got banned from national politics. Jaamat has never been in such a lucrative position ever since Bangladesh got independent, and thus handling such an opportunity comes with them making certain missteps which might hurt them in the long run.
Jaamat has positioned itself as a centre-right party appealing to traditionalist Muslims with some welfare policies here and there. They have also formed a coalition with some other small Islamic parties to increase their vote share this time around and to increase their base beyond their traditional base – something they have struggled with for the last three decades. They have also tried to include minority communities in their party by setting up non-muslim wings in some places. Another thing they have done recently is try to change their party logo which has a more modern design compared to the previous one which featured Arabic writings though whether or not this will be the final design remains to be seen since the change has been met with backlash from their core supporters. Overall, they want to increase their vote bank from what it traditionally has been, especially in areas where they have a chance to win and there is a pretty good chance they might have succeeded in that. Innovision Bangladesh’s recent survey shows them as the second most popular political party in Bangladesh for the upcoming elections at 30.3%, behind BNP’s 41.3%.
None of this is still enough for Jaamat, though. While they have pledged to stand candidates in all 300 seats that will be contested in the upcoming elections next year, they still lack the logistics to field 300 proper candidates in all of those seats. For the last three decades except 1991, they have mostly worked as a coalition party trying to field candidates in a tactical way in specific areas they had a chance to win in; never have they been in a position to contest nationwide elections like they have to now. Jaamat fears they might not get enough seats under the current First Past the Post system, where a voter votes for the candidate they want in a particular seat regardless of how the national vote goes. Jaamat realises this, and that is why they are the hardcore advocates of proportional representation for the upcoming elections in Bangladesh. Jaamat’s proposal for election goes like this: proportional representation where one gets seats allocated to them based on how much they got in the national election overall.
This is in contrast with BNP preferring FPTP in the lower house and an election of upper house members by the lower house members. NCP, while in many ways in similar circumstances as Jaamat, vying to be the second largest party in Bangladesh politics, has decided on a policy of compromise – preferring FPTP for the lower house and proportional representation for the upper house so that smaller parties can have some representation and decision-making power in Bangladesh politics. NCP chose this stance since they feel like this is something they can bring BNP to the negotiating table with. Jaamat, however, sees the national political climate differently – they see a weak and culpable interim government, BNP still lacking proper organisation and NCP as a party which lacks a proper support base. Their student wing has won the student councils in two of the leading universities of Bangladesh – Dhaka University and Jahangirnagar University. They feel they have the power, the mandate and support to influence policy now even if they are not in the government by just sheer force and typical power politics.
Jaamat, to achieve their aims and dreams of a proportional representation system-based election, decided to take to the streets on September 18 with six other small political parties with the demand of proportional representation in the upcoming elections next year. Numerous political analysts have criticised Jaamat’s insistence on this and opine that this might lead Bangladesh to further chaos as Jaamat and BNP refuse to compromise on anything regarding how the future elections and their roadmap would look. Jaamat’s insistence on a PR-based election system purely stems from selfish motivations, such as wanting a deadlocked parliament where they can potentially become kingmakers and wanting a greater share of seats in the parliament than they normally would, BNP preferring the old system also comes from a similar motivation on their end. NCP’s position in this whole saga shows a fine line between compromising regarding policy and a desire to still get as much influence as they realistically can but they lack the strong will of either BNP or Jaamat.
Another thing that has troubled Jaamat is the fact their supporters have become emboldened after their recent victories, and ever since 5 August, a lot of their supporters think it's their national mandate and duty to change how Bangladeshi society operates from top to bottom. Complaints regarding their influence in the current administration are also common, with controversial statements like their potential Chittagong-5 candidate Sirajul Islam saying they – the locals of Chittagong – are the landlords of Chittagong University and its surrounding areas days after students were beaten up by a local mob in the campus area just adds further bad reputation to their optics. Recently, they have also gotten a lot of flak regarding rehabilitating former Awami League members, and this move has been seen as a betrayal to their martyrs. Jaamat has also tried to find allies abroad and build diplomatic connections but still found itself in another controversy after it was uncovered Jamaat Ameer's Foreign Affairs Advisor Professor Dr. Mahmudul Hasan had been imprisoned for raping his own domestic helper. This has been a common tendency for Jaamat sadly, everytime they attempt to do something good, cracks appear in their methods which shows the party needs to mature a lot.
This could all have a disastrous impact on their election prospects, or will it? We need to ask ourselves the question: does the average voter care? Is the average voter aware of what policy is being passed or not? While a direct proportional representation system in the lower house will lead to a future of hung parliaments and unstable governments like it has in many other countries which do not have proper infrastructure and institutions to accommodate such a system, does the average voter put that much thought into it? Jaamat's root level have taken a lot of stances the liberals oppose – but they never would have voted for Jaamat in the first place. Does the emboldening of their supporters and the desire of such supporters to become moral policemen bother most of the population, or does it only bother a certain demographic? Do people outside urban areas even care much about the rehabilitation of Awami politicians or the statements of people like Sirajul Alam that much? Do voters in Bangladesh even vote according to policy? The answer to these questions will remain unknown until the actual elections happen since the Bangladeshi public has not voted for the last 15 years, and a lot has happened since. There is also a new generation who will vote for the first time and dislike both BNP and Awami League; where their vote will go this time around remains to be seen.