MM Rahmatullah: The 10th National Council Session of Bangladesh Muslim League, the oldest and most traditional party in the subcontinent, will be held today. The session will begin at 10:30 am at the Institution of Diploma Engineers, Bangladesh. National leaders will address the session.

It is worth noting that Bangladesh Muslim League is the successor to the All India Muslim League established in 1906. After the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971, the secular Awami League government formed by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman banned the party, but the Bangladesh Muslim League gained legal legitimacy in 1976. After that, Abdus Sabur Khan reorganized the Muslim League in Bangladesh and was elected the party`s president. Another leader of the Muslim League, Shah Azizur Rahman, became the Prime Minister of Bangladesh after joining the Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
As mentioned earlier, the All India Muslim League was established in Dhaka in 1906 under the leadership of Nawab Sir Salimullah. After the partition of India and the independence of Pakistan in 1947, the All India Muslim League was dissolved and the Pakistan Muslim League was formed, and the party came to power in East Pakistan. But in the 1954 elections, the Muslim League lost control of the provincial legislature in the province to the United Front. Later, in the 1960s, the Pakistan Muslim League split into three separate parties: the Convention League, the Council League, and the Qayyum League.
Although the Awami League was born from the Muslim League, the secular Awami League formed by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman always opposed the party. As a result, the three parties newly formed in Bangladesh from East Pakistan were banned after the independence of Bangladesh in 1971.
In 1976, the three parties gained legitimacy as a result of the Political Parties Control Ordinance issued by President Syed AB Mahmud Hossain. Then both the parties merged and formed a single political party on 8 August 1976. Later, it was registered on 21 September 1976.
In 1978, it was divided into two parts. Abdus Sabur Khan led the conservative wing of the party and Shah Azizur Rahman led the liberal wing. Later, Shah Azizur Rahman joined the Bangladesh Nationalist Party. The party led by Abdus Sabur Khan won 20 seats in the 1979 general election.
After Sabur Khan`s death, the Bangladesh Muslim League split into several factions. Its two factions are named Bangladesh Muslim League and Bangladesh Muslim League-BML, which are currently registered under the Bangladesh Election Commission.
In the history of Pakistan from 1947 to 1970, two of the four prime ministers were Muslim League leaders.
The current acting president of the Bangladesh Muslim League is Advocate Mohsin Rashid, a senior lawyer of the Supreme Court, and General Secretary Kazi Abul Khair. Earlier, on July 24, 2024, the president of the Bangladesh Muslim League, former MP Advocate Badruddoza Shuja, requested to be relieved of the post of party president due to physical illness. Currently, the Bangladesh Muslim League is one of the most popular parties in Bangladesh.
Needless to say, almost all of the current leaders of most political parties in the country are successors of the Muslim League.