DHAKA, 31 October 2007 — Dissidents in one of Bangladesh’s largest political parties have ousted their leader Khaleda Zia as party chief while she is under arrest on corruption charges, officials said yesterday.

The move comes amid a worsening split within the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) between former Prime Minister Khaleda’s loyalists and so-called reformers attempting to revitalize the party in line with the emergency government’s anti-graft drive.

Former Finance Minister M. Saifur Rahman, seen as a dissident in the BNP, said he was made acting party chief in Khaleda’s absence after a marathon party meeting late Monday.

“Our aim is to unite the nationalist forces in the country,” Rahman told reporters, adding that under his leadership the party would now adopt reforms to make it more dynamic.

Hafizuddin Ahmed, another former minister and a key BNP rebel, was also made acting secretary-general in place of Khaleda loyalist Khandaker Delwar Hossain — who is sick.

But a close aide to Khaleda said the move was “illegal and went against the constitution” of the party. “We will not accept the decisions. They have no right to replace Khaleda Zia. She is still the party chief,” A.S.M Hannan Shah told AFP. “It’s a part of a big conspiracy... They want to destroy the party.”

Delwar told reporters yesterday he was receiving death threats from some people whom he did not name. Delwar appealed to the caretaker government to provide him security.

Khaleda was arrested in September on charges of graft. She has also been trying to fight a growing party rebellion, and had fired her deputy in the BNP hierarchy, Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan, for “conspiracy to split the party.” That sacking was also annulled by the latest party meeting, party rebels said.

The BNP was Bangladesh’s last governing party, but has been in turmoil since elections were canceled in January over opposition allegations of poll rigging.

Since then the country has been ruled by an army-backed emergency government, which has embarked on a campaign to clean up the country’s notoriously dysfunctional and dynastic political landscape.

Khaleda, 63, has been one of the main targets, along with her archrival Hasina Wajed, another former prime minister and the leader of the Awami League. She is also behind bars facing corruption charges.

Leading political commentator Ataus Samad said the ouster of Khaleda did not appear to be the end of the drama.

“It was played out by a few behind closed doors. The so-called decisions obviously lacked credibility. It is very clear that a large section of BNP has not been consulted,” said Samad.

Ex-Minister Jailed for 17 Years

A former Bangladeshi interior minister was jailed yesterday for 17 years for illegal possession of a revolver and ammunition, a state prosecutor said.

The gun and 25 bullets were found during raids on the home of Lutfozzaman Babar after he was arrested on separate charges of corruption.

The once-powerful minister is the latest high-profile victim of a campaign by the country’s emergency government to clean up Bangladesh’s notoriously corrupt and often violent political scene.

“He was sentenced to 10 years in jail for keeping a revolver illegally and another seven years for keeping 25 rounds of bullets illegally,” state prosecutor Kabir Hossain said. Babar served as a minister in BNP government until October 2006.