The Bangladesh Nationalist Party, popularly abbreviated as BNP, is a major political party in Bangladesh. Founded on 1 September 1978 by former president of Bangladesh, Ziaur Rahman with a view of uniting people with a nationalist ideology, the BNP later became one of the two dominant parties in Bangladesh, along with its archrival, the Awami League. Initially a big tent centrist party, it later moved towards more right-wing politics.