Bangladesh Nationalist Party

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (Bengali: বাংলাদেশ জাতীয়তাবাদী দল Bangladesh Jatiotabadi Dôl, BNP) is currently the ruling political party in Bangladesh. It was founded on September 1, 1978, by former military dictator General Ziaur Rahman. The party has ruled the country many times. The party's chair is General Zia's widow, Begum Khaleda Zia, the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. In 2001 elections the BNP and its allies (including two Islamist parties) got 46% of the vote and 215 of the 300 seats in Parliament, while the secular Awami League got 40% of the votes and 62 seats to become the largest opposition party.

The BNP promotes a very right-of-center policy, and is often accused of being too soft on the fundamentalist segments of the political establishment, sections of which want to establish Sharia law in Bangladesh replacing the current secular constitution. Two such parties, Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh Bangladesh and Islami Oikya Jote are currently coalition parters of the BNP led ruling alliance. General Ziaur Rahman, during his tenure as president of the republic, re-orientated the country's foreign policy, and moving away from the alleged pro-Indian and pro-Soviet positions of the previous government. He emphasized the need for closer relations with Muslim majority countries (including former rulers Pakistan) and the West, and strengthened ties with the Peoples Republic of China, which, along with Saudi Arabia, had only recognized Bangladesh in 1975.

See also

*Politics of Bangladesh
*List of political parties in Bangladesh

External links

*Bangladesh Nationalist Party