Divided BNP in the seat of Ariful Adib

In the July Uprising, Ariful Islam Adib had already been at the forefront of various movements in the country. 

From border killings to two rounds of quota reform movements, it was under his leadership that a strong resistance was formed at Jahangirnagar University. 

After becoming the Senior Joint Convener of the National Citizen Party, Ariful Islam Adib is now eyeing national politics. 

He is planning to contest from the Barisal-4 seat.

At present, the BNP is in a divided state in his constituency. 

Allegations of extortion, land grabbing, and sand extraction are leading to mutual blame games, and internal party conflicts are increasing.

Overall, the divided BNP is Adib’s biggest obstacle.

Barisal-4
Barisal-4 is composed of the Mehendiganj and Hizla upazilas of Barisal district. From 1991 to 2008, in four elections, BNP won three times and the Awami League once. 

However, this seat has strong support for Jamaat-e-Islami. In the 1991 elections, Jamaat’s candidates secured the second-highest votes.

Jamaat has already announced its candidate and begun campaigning. 

Meanwhile, Rajib Ahsan, the General Secretary of the BNP Volunteer Wing and former President of the Student Wing, has also started campaigning in the area. 

On the other hand, the BNP’s last Member of Parliament from this seat, Mezbuddin Farhad, is somewhat on the back foot. 

He has publicly raised allegations of extortion and various irregularities against local leaders and activists. 

As a result, there is significant campaigning against him at the grassroots level.

Voting Scenario
In the 2024 elections for Barisal-4, the total number of voters was 393,227. 

BNP did not participate in the election, and as a result, independent candidate Pankaj Nath, using the Eagle symbol, won. 

Although he had previously been elected as an Awami League candidate, he secured 161,469 votes in this election. 

His closest rival, Mizanur Rahman from the Jatiya Party (using the Plough symbol), received 7,675 votes.

In the 2018 general election, Pankaj Nath, the Awami League’s boat symbol candidate, won with 240,350 votes. 

Among his opponents, Nurur Rahman Jahangir from the Jatiya Oikya Front, who was the candidate of the BNP-led alliance, received 9,019 votes.

In 2014, when BNP did not participate, Pankaj Nath, the Awami League candidate, won with 175,413 votes. 

His nearest rival, Anjuman Salahuddin from BNF, received 5,629 votes.

In the 2008 Ninth General Election, BNP’s Mezbuddin Farhad won this seat with 92,556 votes, while the Awami League’s candidate, Moidul Islam, received 88,184 votes.

Previously, in the 2001 Eighth National Election, BNP‍‍`s Abul Hossain won this seat with 66,091 votes. 

The Awami League’s candidate, Mohsin Sikdar, received 22,502 votes.

In the 1996 elections, BNP’s Abul Hossain won the seat with 50,830 votes, while Mohsin Sikdar from the Awami League received 22,556 votes.

In the 1991 Fifth National Election, Awami League‍‍`s candidate Mohsin Sikdar won with 22,093 votes. 

His closest competitor was Jamaat-e-Islami’s Mahmud Hossain Al Mamun, who secured 16,943 votes.

Adib‍‍`s Background
Ariful Adib, hailing from Mehendiganj, Barisal, began his organizational journey in the 2018 quota movement as the Joint Convener of the Jahangirnagar University (JU) branch. 

In 2019, he was one of the key organizers of the "Against Corruption at Jahangirnagar" movement. 

He later became a member of the committee that drafted the declaration of the political party Ganodhikar Porishod, and a founding member of the party. 

In 2023, he was the coordinator of the Anti-Fascist Student Unity formed by 16 student organizations. 

Additionally, he served as the General Secretary of the Student Rights Committee at the central level.

He has been a victim of multiple attacks by Awami League and Chhatra League. In 2019, Chhatra League attacked him at the DUCSU building.

He was also a member of the Committee for the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement and played a key role in the formation of the National Citizen Committee.

Professionally, from 2016 to 2019, Adib worked as a freelance writer for various national newspapers. 

After 2020, he worked as a Broadcast Journalist and Multimedia Journalist for various media outlets. 

He is currently serving as the Joint Convener of the National Citizen Committee.

Adib’s father is a madrasa teacher, and his mother is a housewife. 

After completing his secondary education in 2011 from Baghiya Al Amin Kamila Madrasa, he enrolled at the NS Kamila Madrasa in Jhalkathi, where he completed his higher secondary education in 2013. 

Later, he was admitted to the Department of Zoology at Jahangirnagar University in the 2013-14 session.

The Barisal-4 seat has never been under the sole control of any political party. The influence of local government is evident in this seat. 

While there are supporters of BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami is also making separate plans for this seat. 

They have already announced Professor Abdul Jabbar as their candidate and begun campaigning. 

However, unless the internal conflicts within BNP become too complex, Ariful Islam Adib’s contest will likely be against the BNP candidate.