Jamaat rally demands reopening of Jagati Sugar Mill

A rally organised by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami in Kushtia on Saturday demanded the immediate reopening of the historic Jagati Sugar Mill, calling for an end to the deprivation of local sugarcane farmers and workers.

The protest rally was held at 3pm at the mill gate on October 10, at the initiative of the party’s Kushtia Sadar unit.

Addressing the rally as the chief guest, Jamaat-e-Islami Kushtia district Nayeb-e-Ameer and Kushtia-2 MP Md Abdul Gafur said the mill had long been a major centre of economic activity and employment in the region.

He said the prolonged closure had pushed thousands of workers’ families into financial hardship and deprived sugarcane farmers of their rightful benefits.

Calling the situation a result of neglect and mismanagement, Gafur urged the authorities to reopen the mill immediately to restore employment and revive the regional economy.

Special guest and Kushtia-3 MP Mufti Amir Hamza said farmers and workers were the driving force of the country’s economy. He warned that a strong movement would be launched with public participation if the mill was not reopened through modernisation without delay.

Kushtia-4 MP Md Afzal Hossain said reopening the mill would help meet sugar demand not only in Kushtia but also across the southern region. He pledged to continue efforts in parliament and on the streets to secure its reopening.

The rally was chaired by Kushtia Sadar upazila Jamaat Ameer Maulana Shariful Islam.

Among others, Kushtia district Jamaat secretary Md Enamul Haque, assistant secretary Md Khairul Islam Robin, Mirpur upazila Ameer Rezaul Karim, Kushtia town Ameer Anisur Rahman Parvez, Sugar Mill Sugarcane Farmers’ Welfare Association president Alam Malitha and secretary Mir Shahabur Rahman Khaibar addressed the gathering.

Labour leaders Nurul Islam Nuri, former CBA presidents Zahidul Islam Latif and Nizam ul Karim, and Bangladesh Labour Welfare Federation Kushtia district president SM Mohsin Ali also spoke at the rally.

The speakers called on the government to take immediate steps to resume sugar production at the mill.

Local Jamaat leaders and activists, sugarcane farmers, mill workers and employees, and representatives of the farmers’ association, CBA and Labour Welfare Federation attended the programme.