Within only one year of their emergence in national politics, Zaker Party took part in the national election.
They gave candidates in 299 seats out of the total 300 seats. For a newly formed party this was an amazing feat, and it duly created a buzz all across the country. Eschewing the customary politics of running in an election only to succeed, Zaker Party created a bold precedent and brought in a qualitative change in electoral politics.
They did not take up the habitual path of election engineering; instead, they called out for a change of fortune for the wretched masses. The candidates, leaders, workers and supporters of Zaker Party comprised fresh, newly picked faces as well as politicians who had long experience in participation of elections; all of them carried a door-to-door campaign to raise people’s consciousness on the value and importance of their votes.
For a newly formed party, it was not easy to carry out all these efforts. Despite the short span of time in their hand, at some of the seats, there appeared a remarkable public response.
At these seats, the established candidates of the opposition were alarmed by the possibility of defeat. In the meantime, Zaker Party candidates, leaders, workers and supporters all over the country kept up a massive interaction with the mass people.
Their endeavors made possible a favorable reception of the Zaker Party symbol, the rose, by people from all walks of life. This initial campaign successfully established Zaker Party in the mainstream politics of our country. The media, too, covered their electoral activities positively.
The national television, the only electronic visual medium at the time, highlighted the long speech given by the then Zaker Party Supreme Command Council Member, Peerjada Alhaj Mostafa Amir Faisal Mujaddedi, in which he outlined the necessity, significance, ideals, objective, goals and the election manifesto of Zaker Party.
His edifying speech showed a new direction to the masses – of how to resolve the national crises, and how to build up our country into a happy and flourishing nation. In the meantime, Zaker Party appeared as a powerful force in the opinion polls. The predictions were: Zaker Party, in their first electoral appearance, was going to grab a significant number of seats. But, as the final day of election approached, the well familiar election engineering of power politics began to be effective.
On 27 February, on the election-day, the mass people went to their respective polling centers with their whole-hearted hopes for a change of their fortune. People all across the country concentrated on the TV screen – on the only live telecast of election results. But from the very beginning of the official poll results, it appeared that Zaker Party candidates received far less votes than expected. In the next few hours, in the vote-counting process, Zaker Party candidates were thrown into a most discreditable and disgraceful level. It was a heinous attempt to thwart Zaker Party’s advancement through planned election engineering.
The genuine patriotic people were stunned by this result. All of Zaker Party leaders, workers, supporters and well-wishers were overwhelmed and devastated.
But the attempts to disgrace Zaker Party’s public image was not successful, in the end. The party made use of their post-election experience and started to effectively rearrange and expand their organizational structure. This time, the organizational discipline inside the party, too, was strengthened all over. Peerjada Alhaj Mostafa Amir Faisal Mujaddedi was nominated as the Party Chairman. And, one by one, the committees at district, thana, and other levels were reorganized. In the next five years, Zaker Party maintained their move forward through different programs and activities.
In step with the political development of the next few years, there came another national election in 1996. This time, in addition to carrying out the election campaign, the Zaker Party Chairman made a genuine effort to reach out to people at large. He gave speeches, one after another, in massive rallies in Dhaka City and throughout the country.
On his way to the grand rallies, he was forced to give speeches at street rallies at different places. At this time, from morning to deep into the night, the Zaker Party Chairman managed to motivate and inspire the people whom he addressed in this swift-moving campaign.
People at large were wary of the final election results. Would there be a similar election engineering this time, as well? In the end, those concerns proved out to be true. In the 1996 election, too, Zaker Party was thrown into a discreditable level, where they appeared to have received the least number of votes!
But the most remarkable feature was: Zaker Party turned out to be the deciding factor, in two consecutive national elections. It was noted that, even after thwarting Zaker Party through election engineering, the candidates of the largest political parties got defeated in some seats with a margin which is close to the votes the Zaker Party candidates got.
Among those defeated candidates, there were some heavyweight politicians as well. It was a remarkable achievement on part of Zaker Party that they emerged as a deciding factor in the national elections.
Later on, when the national election in 2001 came, Zaker Party and its followers were still recovering from the shock of the demise of the great spiritual leader, the party-founder, Bishwa Wali Hazrat Shah Sufi Khwaja-baba Faridpuri (q.s.a.), who died on 1 May, 2001. For the leaders, workers and supporters of Zaker Party, the shock was so intense that all of them were overwhelmed with distress and anguish. It was a great achievement on part of the two leaders, the two representatives of the Bishwa Wali, Peerjada Alahj Khwaja Mahfuzul Haque Mujaddedi and Peerjada Alhaj Khwaja Mostafa Amir Faisal Mujaddedi, who turned this overwhelming grief into a resurgent force for all Zaker Party members and followers.
In an attempt to show respect to democratic practice, Zaker Party decided to set aside the mournful state of mind and run for only five seats.
In the recent 2008 National Election, Zaker Party’s participation was a distinctive election strategy. This time, the most significant and noteworthy feature was: the Zaker Party Chairman himself took part for the first time in a comprehensive national election.
The Zaker Party Chairman, in special circumstances, took part in the Sadarpur-Charbhadrasan by-election in Faridpur, in 1999. The mass people dwelling by the Padma River had been waiting for an opportunity to send their dear leader to the national assembly. They had made different efforts to realize this dream.
After the Parliament Member at this seat suddenly passed away, the by-election took place. And the people of this region took this by-election as an occasion for making their appeals heard. They came rushing to their beloved leader Peerjada Alhaj Khwaja Mostafa Amir Faisal Mujaddedi and earnestly urged him to participate in this by-election. The people had an idea that the leader would not consent to their appeal; but they kept on pleading with their request.
At length, people from all walks of life in Sadarpur-Charbhadrasan got united to persuade their beloved leader to take part in the by-election. One morning, the dignitaries, leaders, workers and supporters of different political parties, and people at large, started to gather in the Alia Madrashah Ground at Bishwa Zaker Manjil. As the hours progress, the ground was filled up with people and overflowing masses took up the adjoining vicinities.
The whole area began to reverberate with slogans – all of them demanding that the Zaker Party Chairman must participate in the by-election. With all this appeal and demand from the mass people, the leader could not hold himself back: he came out in the Madrashah Ground. He had to respond to the genuine love and heart-felt appeals of these thousands of people from all walks of life. As he gave his promise to take part in the by-election, the present gathering burst out in loud cheers.
The air began to resound with the rumble of slogans. That was the beginning. In the next 35 days, all men, women, children, and people at large living by the Padma, were overcome with a dizzying love for their beloved leader. At the break of dawn, every day, the Zaker Party Chairman went out for mass contact with the people. He kept running out to the mass people, kept listening to their woes, and promised to salvage their fortune.
The Zaker Party Chairman went on with the mass contact with people, despite the harsh climate of the summer and the onrush of the monsoon. He sometimes walked for miles, along paved roads, pathways, and through dry and marshy grounds. He travelled by road, and by river; by day, and by night. Sometimes he crossed the Padma, sometimes travelled down the river, through other branches of the river and canals. People from all walks of life, of all ages, of all religions, beliefs and creeds, patiently waited for him on the sides of his travelling routes.They waited for hours to see their beloved leader. They came rushing on to touch him, breaking in tears. Their passion touched the leader, as well. And he, too, could not hold back his tears.
This mutual devotion between leader and people is ordained to be recognized as a remarkable feat. With time, it surely will gain the glory it deserves. In this mass contact, during the election campaign, the Zaker Party Chairman walked for 30 miles, on average, every day. All the party leaders, workers and supporters cast off their divisions and petty feuds, and became united in their support for Peerjada Alhaj Mostafa Amir Faisal Mujaddeddi.
Through this remarkable election campaign, the Zaker Party Chairman won over the hearts of the people. In one word – before the election-day, he gained the heart-felt support of more than 90% people of this region. Later on, because of the current political mal-practice and violence, and to save life and property of the masses – the Chairman took the decision of boycotting the election. He voluntarily gave away the prospect of a definite victory, two days before the election-day. On the occasion of the last election rally, when people, sensing an upcoming victory, were rushing to the assembly at Sadarpur Stadium – the processions were attacked by political hooligans. Despite the provocations of the opposition, the jubilant supporters did not break into violence. At length, at this last assembly of the election campaign, at the presence of more than fifty thousand people, the Zaker Party Chairman made the announcement of boycotting the election.
In an instant, the jubilant atmosphere turned grief-stricken and mournful; people broke into tears and began to protest. But, for the Zaker Party Chairman, it was imperative to save the people from blood-shed and the destruction of their property. He remained adamant in his decision of withdrawing from the election.
This was a selfless precedent in the history of power politics of our country. At this rally, the Zaker Party Chairman urged the voters to boycott the election. Consequently, on the election-day, it emerged that not even 2% of the voters went to the polling booths. Later on, this election and its results made headlines in the national newspapers. In the front pages of these papers, there appeared sarcastic cartoons ridiculing the absurd, made-up election results.
At length, there came the 2008 National Election. As mentioned earlier – the Zaker Party Chairman and his party took part in this election for strategic reasons. The results would barely show this, but Zaker Party managed to achieve remarkable strategic goals through participating in this election. Throughout the country, Zaker Party ran for more than 30 parliamentary seats. The Zaker Party Chairman, once again, won the hearts of the mass people through his election campaign. His mass contact with the people suggested: he began his campaign, as though, just from the point he had left it in 1999. And, in consequence, he triggered off an upsurge of stimulation and encouragement among the people. In consideration of greater interests, he never made the victory of his own party the focus of his campaign.
To say it simply – Zaker Party, from its foundation, embarked on a voyage to bring in qualitative changes to national and electoral politics. For more than a quarter of a century, they have made a precedent of selfless devotion to human welfare. People, for sure, will get the results of these vigorous endeavors one day.