For the polls, against the polls

The Gono Forum, founded by constitutional expert and former foreign minister Dr Kamal Hossain and known for a track record of losing security deposits by its candidates in national polls, finds itself divided  over the participation in the upcoming election.
 
Following Dr Kamal Hossain's recent withdrawal from active politics and assuming the role of emeritus president of the party, some leaders have formally submitted nomination papers to participate in the election, while others are actively involved in the ongoing anti-government movement alongside the BNP, boycotting the polls.
 
Pro-election leaders claim their involvement in the polls is guided by Dr Kamal Hossain. Nine party members, including the current president Mofizul Islam Khan Kamal, filed nominations under the electoral symbol "rising sun". However, the Election Commission has rejected four of these submissions.
 
A separate faction led by Mostafa Mohsin Montu and Subrata Chowdhury has opted to boycott the elections.
 
In the 2018 national election, the Gono Forum formed the Jatiya Oikya Front with the BNP. Under the "sheaf of paddy" symbol, the party contested 27 seats and won two, despite the then-president, Dr Kamal Hossain, opting not to run in any constituency.
 
Gono Forum President Mofizul Islam Khan told The Business Standard, "This time, we are not aligned with the Awami League or the BNP. We are not part of any alliance; we are participating in the election independently."
 
Regarding the anti-election faction within the party, he said, "Those members who are abstaining from the election do not represent the core of the party."
 
He said the party today intends to apply against the cancellations of nominations, including those submitted by Mokabbir Hossain for Sylhet-2, Alimul Ihsan for Cumilla-5, and Abdur Rahman Jahangir for Cumilla-11.
 
"If the election is fair, we anticipate winning at least five seats. I, personally, am running from Manikganj-3," he added.
In a rally in front of the Jatiya Press Club on Sunday, Subrata Chowdhury said the list of winners in the upcoming national parliamentary elections has already been prepared. He alleged that the government is once again attempting to stage a farce in the name of the election.
"Some individuals, secretly or openly, are visiting Ganabhaban to seek blessings. How many seats will be allocated to whom? Who will receive the boat symbol, and who will be designated as an independent or a dummy candidate? What kind of election is this?"

History of losing security deposit
 
In 1992, Dr Kamal Hossain founded the Gono Forum after his exit from the Awami League. The party made its debut in national elections in 1996, contesting from 104 constituencies and garnering around 54,000 votes. All candidates, including Kamal Hossain, lost their security deposits in that election.
 
According to Election Commission data on the last election, the party secured 2 seats out of 27 contested, amassing around 500,000 votes. In the preceding 2014 election, the party boycotted the national election along with the BNP.
 
In the 2008 elections, despite fielding candidates in 45 constituencies, the Gono Forum did not secure any seats, obtaining around 73,000 votes. Nearly all candidates lost their security deposits in this election.
 
In 2001, the party contested in 17 constituencies and garnered only 8,494 votes. None of the candidates emerged victorious, leading to the loss of security deposits for all. 

This was Kamal Hossain's last electoral contest, when he ran for Dhanmondi-Mohammadpur constituency and lost security deposit. Since then, he has not contested in any elections.
 
On 27 October this year, he formally withdrew from active politics in the Gono Forum through a written statement. 
 
Before independence, Kamal Hossain was elected to the Pakistan National Assembly from one of the seats vacated by Bangabandhu following the 1970 election. 

He chaired the drafting committee entrusted with preparing the constitution of independent Bangladesh in April 1972 and  served as a Member of Parliament following the 1973 election. He emerged victorious from the then Dhaka-14 constituency for the Awami League, defeating JSD candidate Shahjahan Siraj.

Following the 1973 election, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman appointed him the country's Foreign Minister. In the subsequent year, he was entrusted with the additional responsibilities of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.

In November 1981, Dr Kamal Hossain, as the candidate of the Awami League, took part in the presidential election. He lost to the BNP's Justice Abdus Sattar, who had been acting President since the assassination of President Ziaur Rahman in May of the year.