CHATTOGRAM — The National Citizen Party (NCP) has failed to recruit former Chattogram City Corporation mayor M. Manjur Alam, who had been offered the role of city convener and a future mayoral nomination from the party.
NCP chief coordinator Hasnat Abdullah, a member of parliament, personally traveled to Chattogram and went to Manjur Alam’s residence to make the offer. Counting on his participation, the NCP organized an induction event Thursday in Chattogram for leaders and workers from various political parties.
The event at the Chattogram Press Club was attended by NCP convener Nahid Islam, also a member of parliament, and southern region chief organizer Hasnat Abdullah.
Sources close to the matter said the NCP had been trying to reach Manjur Alam in various ways for two days before the event. Annoyed by the persistent contact, Manjur Alam first shut off his mobile phone and went incommunicado. At one point he left his residence in North Kattali. Police and personnel from various agencies later went to his home but could not find him or determine his location.
The induction event went ahead without Manjur Alam. He was not the only no-show — no significant leaders or workers from the BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami or any other major party were seen attending the event either.
Several people were welcomed with flower garlands, but none were familiar faces. Sources said the NCP’s Chattogram induction event was therefore widely seen as a disappointment and a flop.
This correspondent called Manjur Alam’s personal mobile number again Friday afternoon. The phone was switched off. A family member said Manjur Alam had turned off his phone and left home because he was harassed by the NCP’s overtures. “No one can be forced into a party against their will,” the family member said.
Another faction was trying to push Manjur Alam into the NCP to discredit him, the family member added.
NCP southern region chief organizer Hasnat Abdullah had visited Manjur Alam’s North Kattali residence on April 14, Pohela Boishakh, to offer him the role of city committee convener and a mayoral nomination in the city corporation election. Manjur Alam declined the offer at the time. Both sides initially described the visit as personal, with no political discussion. It has since become clear, however, that the visit was political and was related to drawing Manjur Alam into the party.
At the time, BNP leaders and workers confronted Hasnat Abdullah at Manjur Alam’s home. They accused him of betraying the spirit of July by visiting an “Awami League leader” and “patron of fascists.” A separate BNP faction later escorted Hasnat Abdullah away and arranged for him to reach the airport. Chattogram City Corporation Mayor Dr. Shahadat Hossain also questioned Hasnat Abdullah’s visit to Manjur Alam’s residence. “Despite their big words in parliament, the Hasnats are patronizing the fascists,” Mayor Shahadat said.
Sources said the Chattogram metropolitan branch of the NCP organized the “Induction of Various Political Leaders and Citizens into the National Citizen Party” event Thursday at the Chattogram Press Club. The NCP had been trying to reach Manjur Alam in various ways for several days before the event. When he shut off his phone, his relatives and close associates were contacted.
It was not only the NCP. A day before the induction event, police and various intelligence agencies also searched for Manjur Alam at his home and other locations. Sources said the activity was aimed mainly at getting him to attend the NCP event and join the party.
Manjur Alam, a former Chattogram City Corporation mayor, was once a disciple and follower of late Awami League leader A.B.M. Mohiuddin Chowdhury. He was elected councillor three times from the North Kattali ward of Chattogram City Corporation. Under Mohiuddin Chowdhury’s patronage, he served as panel mayor multiple times. He served as acting mayor for almost two years during the One-Eleven period. After Mohiuddin Chowdhury was arrested during One-Eleven, distance grew between Manjur Alam and Chowdhury’s family. The BNP took advantage of that distance.
In 2010, during a candidate shortage in difficult times for the BNP, Manjur Alam was chosen. Late BNP minister Abdullah Al Noman and current finance and planning minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury drew him in, and he was given the BNP’s mayoral nomination.
Running on the BNP ticket, Manjur Alam defeated his mentor Mohiuddin Chowdhury by a wide margin to be elected mayor. He later ran as an independent for parliament in 2018 and 2024, losing both elections.
After Aug. 5, Manjur Alam sponsored NCP iftar gatherings and other events. He campaigned actively for BNP candidates in Sitakunda, including Lion Aslam Chowdhury, in the national election held Feb. 12, 2026. Though out of power and holding no official position, Manjur Alam has remained a figure of public interest.
A scion of an old wealthy Chattogram family, Manjur Alam runs social welfare activities through family foundations despite having no political platform. The NCP had hoped to make a splash by recruiting a prominent and wealthy figure like him, and the party tried until the last moment to get him to attend the event.
Those hopes were dashed when Manjur Alam went into hiding two days before the induction event. His unannounced exit has again sparked discussion.
However, NCP Chattogram metropolitan coordinator and media cell chief Riduan Hridoy said, “I have no knowledge of any report that former Chattogram City Corporation mayor Manjur Alam would join or was supposed to join the NCP. We are not disappointed that he did not join.” He said many important figures joined the NCP on Thursday, including a cousin of former chief adviser Professor Dr. Yunus. A university teacher, Dr. Maleka Afroz, also joined, Hridoy said. Several leaders and workers from an organization called Love Bangladesh also joined. “Our event was a success,” he said.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report