Extortion, corruption increase under BNP govt: Jamaat Ameer

Opposition Leader and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Dr Shafiqul Rahman has alleged that extortion, corruption and politicisation have increased since the BNP formed the government, while significant reforms promised after the July mass uprising have yet to be made.

He said the government had also not responded positively to the demand for forming a reform council within parliament, stressing that the aspirations of the July uprising would remain unfulfilled until people’s rights, justice and state reforms were ensured.

Dr Shafiqul made the remarks on Saturday morning after visiting a still-image exhibition titled “July Is Not Over Yet”, based on the July mass uprising, at the official residence of the opposition leader at 29 Minto Road in the capital.

Diplomats from the European Union, Denmark, Canada, Iran, Pakistan and the Maldives, along with the UN Resident Coordinator and the Head of Delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Dhaka, among others, visited the exhibition.

Dr Shafiqul said the student movements in 2018 and 2024 were driven by demands for justice and reform. He said prolonged discussions had led to proposals for reforms, including a neutral and non-partisan system for appointing judges and forming the Election Commission.

He said a referendum had also been proposed and that any decision endorsed by the people must be implemented.
However, he alleged that after the BNP formed the government, significant changes to the previous system had not been made, while extortion, corruption and politicisation had increased.

He also said their demand for forming a reform council within parliament had not received a positive response.

The Jamaat chief said the aspirations of the July mass uprising had yet to be fulfilled and stressed that the uprising would achieve its true significance only when people’s rights, justice and state reforms were ensured.

He said people from all sections of society, regardless of their profession, religion or background, had faced repression during the previous 15-and-a-half years of rule. He alleged that those in power had treated themselves as the owners of the country and the people as their subjects.

Referring to the 2009 Pilkhana tragedy, he said 57 army officers were killed in the incident, which he described as the beginning of a “politics of killing” by the then government.

He also termed the execution of Jamaat’s top leaders as “judicial killings” and alleged that killings, enforced disappearances and suppression of dissent had been carried out using various state agencies and security forces.

Dr Shafiqul said the exhibition was not intended to highlight the achievements of any government but to portray the history of authoritarian rule and the repression suffered by the people.

He declared that the movement for people’s rights would continue until justice and fundamental rights were ensured.
Those currently responsible for running the country, he said, must understand people’s expectations and govern accordingly.
“If anyone attempts to deprive people of their rights,” he said, the people must remain prepared to defend those rights.