Hefazat’s nine demands to PM Tarique

Published : Sunday, 9 August, 2026 at 7:25 PM

Observer Online Report

Collected Photo

Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh has placed a nine-point set of demands before Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, including the enactment of a law prescribing the highest punishment for insulting Allah, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), the Holy Quran and Islam, ensuring that no law contradicts the Quran and Sunnah, and bringing those responsible for the May 5, 2013, Shapla Chattar killings to justice.

The demands were presented during a meeting between Prime Minister Tarique Rahman and Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh Amir Allama Shah Muhibbullah Babunagari at Al-Jamiatul Islamia Azizul Uloom Babunagar Madrasa in Fatikchhari, Chattogram, on Sunday afternoon.

The demands were included in a congratulatory address presented to the prime minister by Hefazat Secretary General Sajidur Rahman.

In the address, Hefazat welcomed the prime minister to Babunagar, describing Fatikchhari as a historic center of Islamic education, religious reform and spiritual practice. The organisation also recalled the contributions of its founder Amir Allama Shah Ahmad Shafi, former Amir Allama Hafiz Junayed Babunagari and those it described as martyrs of struggles to protect Islam and Bangladesh's sovereignty.

The statement said the Babunagar area has emerged as an important center of contemporary Islamic scholarship, particularly because of the presence of senior Islamic scholars such as former Hefazat chief Sheikhul Hadith Allama Junayed Babunagari and current Amir Allama Shah Muhibbullah Babunagari.

Hefazat described the prime minister's visit as a significant new chapter in the political and historical trajectory of the region.

The organisation also highlighted the role of Islamic scholars in the anti-British movement, the July uprising, the 2013 movement against what it termed “atheism,” and struggles for religious consciousness, social justice and political sovereignty.

The congratulatory address also referred to Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's father, late President Ziaur Rahman, saying that he introduced “Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim” at the beginning of the Constitution and incorporated complete faith and trust in Almighty Allah as a fundamental principle of state policy.

It also recalled the role of Tarique Rahman's mother, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, whom Hefazat said had shown respect and sympathy toward Islamic scholars, pirs, mashayekhs and religious institutions. The organisation particularly remembered her support for Hefazat's May 5, 2013 movement at Shapla Chattar.

Hefazat's nine demands

1. Enact a law prescribing the highest punishment for insulting Allah, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), the Holy Quran and Islam.

2. Ensure that no law is passed that contradicts the Quran and Sunnah.

3. Ensure exemplary punishment for those responsible for the May 5, 2013 killings at Shapla Chattar, as well as those involved in the 2021 anti-Modi protests and the killings during the July-August 2024 uprising, including those accused of ordering or carrying out the killings.

4. Fully implement the master's-equivalent recognition of Dawra-e-Hadith degrees from Qawmi madrasas, opening opportunities for employment and higher education at home and abroad. Hefazat also demanded that government job circulars for religious teachers recognize Dawra-e-Hadith degrees alongside degrees from government madrasas.

5. Make Islamic religious education compulsory for Muslim students from the primary level through higher secondary education.

6. Declare the Ahmadiyya community non-Muslim and ban Hizb ut-Tahrir.

7. Stop what Hefazat described as conspiracies and activities by domestic and foreign missionaries in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.

8. Withdraw what it called false cases filed against Islamic scholars during the Awami League government and involve the country's ulema in the process of rebuilding the state.

9. Maintain the ban on the entry of Indian preacher Maulana Saad into Bangladesh and deny the Saad faction permission to hold its Ijtema at Tongi, while keeping the activities of Tabligh Jamaat and the Biswa Ijtema under the supervision of Islamic scholars.

At the conclusion of the address, Hefazat described the prime minister's visit to Fatikchhari as more than a formal tour, calling it a symbol of the “union of religion and the state.” It expressed hope that his leadership and respect for Islamic scholars would inspire unity among the country's Muslim population.

The organisation also prayed for the success, safety and effectiveness of the prime minister's visit and for his ability to build Bangladesh into a self-reliant, justice-based and morally strong state.

Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed, State Minister for Land and Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs Mir Mohammad Helal, local MP Sarwar Alamgir and Hefazat Secretary General Maulana Sajidur Rahman were present at the meeting.