Awami League has warned the party’s allies will not be able to ‘win comfortably’ as they had before.

“We will compete and our allies have to compete as well,” the ruling party’s General Secretary Obaidul Quader said at a press conference at the party president’s political office in Dhaka’s Dhanmondi on Tuesday. “There is no alternative to competition. You must contest in the election and earn a result.”

The senior Awami League leader’s statement comes amid slow progress on a seat-sharing agreement between the party and its allies in the 14-Party Alliance.

Quader said his statement was not only directed at the alliance, but also at the Jatiya Party which has allied with the Awami League in two of the three elections since 2008.

Even when the two parties were not formally allied, they had a seat-sharing agreement in the remaining general election.

NO SEAT-SHARING WITH JATIYA PARTY

“There is no possibility of seat-sharing,” Quader said in response to a question about whether seats would be shared with the Jatiya Party. “They must win through competition.”

The Awami League had already informed the Election Commission that the party will compete in unity with the 14 Party Alliance.

On Dec 4, Awami League President Sheikh Hasina met with the leaders of her allied parties.

Following the meeting, it was announced that Quader would declare the seat-sharing agreement at a press conference the following day.

But the leaders of the parties have yet to reach a consensus on the issue after eight days.

Several media outlets have published reports of dissatisfaction among the leaders of the 14 parties regarding the Awami League’s seat-sharing offer.

The ruling party has yet to issue a statement.

According to these reports, 14 Party Alliance members are not only demanding the Awami League withdraw from parliamentary races in certain seats, but also guarantee that party leaders do not run as independents. The Awami League has allegedly refused this demand.

The Workers Party, JASAD, and Tariqat Federation have benefitted since allying with the Awami League in 2008.

They have retained parliamentary seats with the Awami League support, something they may have found difficult on their own.

But local Awami League leaders have been pushing to contest these seats for the past few general elections, according to media reports.

Strong Awami League candidates now running for three of the parliamentary seats had ceded to the Jatiya Party in previous polls.