Jamaat warns against extortion

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer and Leader of the Opposition in Parliament Dr Shafiqur Rahman has said people did not shed blood during the July Uprising to make way for extortionists, looters and those involved in injustice, while the party’s Secretary General Mia Golam Porwar has accused the BNP-led government of following practices previously associated with the Awami League.

Addressing a former members’ conference organised by Jamaat’s Chattogram city unit at the GEC Convention Centre on Tuesday, October 20, Dr Shafiq said the public would not accept looting, extortion or the violation of people’s rights.

“People did not shed blood in July for looters and extortionists,” he said, warning that those responsible for wrongdoing would eventually have to answer for their actions.

He said accountability must apply to anyone who abuses people, deprives them of their rights or unlawfully takes what belongs to others. He also urged former members of the organisation to maintain honesty, earn their livelihoods through lawful means and build public confidence through their conduct and work rather than engage in verbal disputes.

Dr Shafiq also expressed concern over the upcoming local government elections, alleging that ruling-party members in different areas were threatening to withhold development funds and projects if voters did not elect their party’s candidates.

“The signs surrounding the local government elections are not encouraging,” he said, referring to alleged statements by ruling-party figures linking development allocations to electoral outcomes.

The Jamaat chief also commented on State Minister for Liberation War Affairs Ishraque Hossain’s participation in an anti-drug operation while carrying a firearm. Responding to journalists in Chattogram, he said there was no reason to portray the minister’s anti-drug activities negatively, but suggested that carrying a weapon during the operation had been unnecessary.

“Police forces were present, so it would have been better if Ishraque had not carried a firearm,” Dr Shafiq said.

He cautioned that the public display of weapons by a minister or elected representative could set an undesirable precedent, even when the intention was positive, and could potentially encourage others to misuse similar situations.

On drug control, Dr Shafiq said drugs were destroying society. Although legislation to control drugs had been passed in parliament, he said his objective was not merely to regulate the problem but to eliminate it.

Meanwhile, Jamaat Secretary General Mia Golam Porwar accused the government of restricting political and religious gatherings after the Rajshahi district administration reportedly denied permission for a religious gathering featuring Jamaat lawmaker Mufti Amir Hamza in Godagari upazila. The programme had been scheduled for Monday, October 19.

Speaking at a press conference at the party’s central office in Dhaka on Tuesday, Porwar said the government was repeating practices for which the Awami League had previously been criticised.

“The Awami League used to do these things, and now the BNP is doing the same,” he said, alleging that political meetings and religious programmes were being obstructed.

Porwar said permission for the religious gathering had been withdrawn because the authorities could not prevent the participation of the elected lawmaker through other means. He urged the government to move away from what he described as authoritarian practices.

He also criticised the reported dissolution of madrasa managing committees through an official notification, alleging that the move was intended to install politically favoured individuals. He compared the alleged approach with the practices of the previous Awami League government.

The allegations made by the two Jamaat leaders could not be independently verified from the information available for this report. Responses from the government, the BNP and the relevant local administration were not included in the supplied accounts.