The country is going back to the old dark path, the Amir of Jamaat-e-Islami and leader of the opposition in the national parliament, Dr Shafiqur Rahman, has said.
He made the remarks as chief guest at an exchange-of-views event with those injured in the July mass uprising and members of the families of those killed, organised by Dhaka metropolitan Jamaat in the capital on Thursday (30 July).
Shafiqur Rahman said the main aim of the sacrifice of those killed and injured in the July mass uprising was to build a Bangladesh free of fascism, without discrimination and based on justice. But instead of realising that aspiration, “shameless politicisation” was now going on in the country, he said. Capable and patriotic people were being removed from government, private and semi-government institutions, banks and insurance firms, corporations, the administration and various important posts, and appointments were being made on party considerations.
The leader said shameless politicisation was now going on everywhere — universities, zila parishads, the administration, banks and insurance firms, corporations. Was this not a new kind of quota, he asked. Capable and honest people were being removed and dishonest and corrupt people placed in important positions, so that a paradise of corruption could be established.
The Jamaat Amir said: did those who gave their lives make their sacrifice only to remove one party and put another in power? They wanted a change in the system of the state, a change of the system. But it now seemed the country was going back to that old dark path.
He said that during the 2024 movement, when many political parties kept their distance by calling it merely a students’ movement, Jamaat-e-Islami had openly called on the people of the country and on its own leaders and workers to stand beside the young people in the movement. Yet even after the movement succeeded, the party had never claimed credit for it.
He said: “We did not say we were the masterminds of the movement. Nor did we claim any credit on the ground that so many of our people were killed. We did not even demand elections. Rather, we gave priority to standing beside the families of those killed and the injured.”
Shafiqur Rahman said that although extortion had begun in the country after 6 August, no effective steps had been taken to stop it. The political leadership concerned had been warned about it, but no change had come.
Raising the subject of the families of those killed, he said many families had given more importance to realising the dreams of those killed than to financial help. The father of one of those killed had returned the financial help given to them and asked that it be handed to a more needy family of someone killed. This mentality should be a lesson for those running the state, he said.
He said most of those who gave their lives were marginal and working people. They had no interest in getting a government-job quota. They had taken to the streets to see a Bangladesh free of fascism.
Shafiqur Rahman said: “We want justice, not revenge. The killers of those killed will one day certainly be brought to justice on the soil of this Bengal. However many years it takes, this justice will happen. We will never step back from this demand.”
He said Jamaat-e-Islami would also not step back from the demand for a referendum and for the implementation of the promises made to the people. Addressing the government, he said: “You have not kept your word to the nation; you have broken faith. There is still time — return to the right path in line with the people’s expectations.”
He said: “We are being shown various fears and threats. But we fear no one except Allah. Many offers of compromise and various kinds of temptation have been put before us, and we have rejected them all. We will not bow our heads to injustice.”
He added that the sacrifice of those killed and injured in the July mass uprising would never be allowed to go in vain. “Even if we have to give our lives, we will not hand July over to anyone. We will hold the spirit of July in our hearts. We will always try to stand beside the families of those killed and the injured.”
At the event he prayed for the forgiveness of the souls of those killed, for the swift recovery of the injured and for patience and strength for their families, and sought the prayers of the people of the country.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report